This consolidation is unofficial and is for reference only.

For the official version of the regulations, consult the original documents on file with the Office of the Registrar of Regulations , or refer to the Royal Gazette

Part II .

Regulations are amended frequently.

Please check the list of Regulations by Act to see if there are any recent amendments to these regulations filed with our office that are not yet included in this consolidation.

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Minimum Wage Order (General)

made under Sections 50 and 52 of the

Labour Standards Code

R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 246

O.I.C. 1999-56 (effective October 1, 1999), N.S. Reg. 5/1999

amended to O.I.C. 2025-355 (effective December 1, 2025), N.S. Reg. 266/2025

Table of Contents

Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.

Click here to go to the text of the regulations .

Citation

Application

Definitions

Employer’s responsibility

Minimum wage for employees

Notice of adjustments

Maximum rates for board and lodging

Maximum work week for minimum wage purposes

Minimum overtime wage

Call in

Waiting time

Piecework

Uniforms

Citation

1 These regulations may be cited as the Minimum Wage Order (General) .

Application

2 This Order applies within the Province of Nova Scotia to all employees and their

employers except all of the following

(

a) persons who are employed in a private home by the householder to provide

domestic service

(

i) for a member of the employee’s immediate family, or

(ii) for no more than 24 hours within a period beginning on a Sunday

and ending on the following Saturday, or during such other 7 day

period which is the customary pay period of the employer;

(

b) persons under the age of 16 years engaged in work on a farm whose

employment is directly related to the primary production of eggs, milk,

grain, seeds, fruit, vegetables, Christmas trees, Christmas wreaths, maple

products, honey, tobacco, pigs, cattle, sheep, poultry, or animal furs;

(

c) employees for whom there are special orders by the Governor in Council;

(

d) apprentices under an apprenticeship agreement in accordance with the

provisions of the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualifications Act ;

(

e) all persons receiving training under government sponsored and government

approved plans;

(

f) persons employed at a playground or summer camp operated on a non-profit

basis;

(

g) real estate salespersons;

(

h) automobile salespersons;

(

i) salespersons, other than route salespersons, who are entitled to receive all or

any part of their remuneration as commissions in respect of offers to

purchase or sales of goods, wares, merchandise or services which offers are

normally made other than at the employer’s establishment;

(

j) insurance agents licenced as such under the Insurance Act ;

(

k) persons engaged in work on fishing vessels;

(

l) employees and employers to whom the Minimum Wage Order (Logging

and Forest Operations) or the Minimum Wage Order (Construction and

Property Maintenance) applies;

(

m) athletes while engaged in activities related to their athletic endeavour.

Definitions

(1) In this Order

“annual Consumer Price Index” means the “all-items”, annual, Consumer Price

Index for Canada published by Statistics Canada under the Statistics Act (Canada);

“domestic service” means housework, property maintenance, supervision or

service, including health or personal care, for the comfort, safety or convenience of

one or more members of the household;

“immediate family” means having the relationship of spouse, parent, guardian,

child, ward, grandparent, grandchild, sister, brother, mother-in-law, father-in-law,

son-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, brother-in-law, aunt, uncle, niece, or

nephew;

“projected annual Consumer Price Index” means the estimate of the annual

Consumer Price Index for a given year calculated by adding the Consumer Price

Index values for the months of January through November in the year preceding

the year for which the estimate is to be determined and dividing the sum by 11.

(2) Words defined in the Labour Standards Code and the regulations made under the

Labour Standards Code shall have the same meaning when used in this Order.

4 [repealed]

Employer’s responsibility

5 No employer shall employ an employee at a rate of wages less than the minimum wage

fixed in this Order or otherwise violate or fail to observe the provisions of this Order.

Minimum wage for employees

6 (1) [repealed]

(2) The minimum wage for employees under this Order is fixed at the hourly rate set

out in the following table:

Effective Date

Rate

October 1, 2025

$16.50

April 1, 2026

$16.75

October 1, 2026

$17.00

(3) Effective on and after every April 1 beginning in 2027, the current hourly

minimum wage rate for employees is adjusted by the percentage change in the

projected annual Consumer Price Index for the calendar year immediately

preceding the year in which the adjustment occurs, plus an additional 1%, and

rounded to the nearest $0.05.

(4) If the calculation required by subsection (3) results in an hourly rate that is less

than the current hourly rate, there is no adjustment and the minimum wage remains

fixed at the current hourly rate.

Notice of adjustments

6A

(1) The Minister shall give public notice of any adjustments to the minimum wage as

calculated under subsection 6(3) by publishing a notice in the Royal Gazette

Part I

no later than January 31 of the year in which the adjustment is to take effect.

(2) No later than April 1, every employer of employees affected by this Order shall

post and keep posted in a conspicuous place in the employer’s establishment or

plant a copy of any public notice given by the Minister under subsection (1) so that

all employees affected thereby may have ready access to and see the same.

7 The rates hereby fixed are minimum rates and in no way are to be construed as

maximum rates.

Maximum rates for board and lodging

(1) If an employer furnishes board or lodging, or both, to an employee, the employer

shall not deduct from the minimum wage of the employee an amount exceeding

the applicable amount set out in the following table:

Effective Date

Board and

Lodging

(per week)

Board Only

(per week)

Lodging

Only

(per week)

Single

Meals

May 1, 2008

$65.00

$52.65

$14.65

$3.45

October 1, 2011

$68.20

$55.55

$15.45

$3.65

(2) No employer shall charge an employee for a meal that the employee did not

receive.

(3) Where an employer charges an employee for a single meal or for board and

lodging or either of them under circumstances in which the employee has no

reasonable alternative opportunity to purchase the single meal or board and lodging

or either of them, the employer shall not charge the employee an amount which, if

it were deducted from the employee’s wage, would reduce the wage below the

minimum wage by more than the amounts set out in subsection (1).

Maximum work week for minimum wage purposes

9 The rates fixed by this Order are for a maximum work week of 48 hours within a period

commencing on a Sunday and ending the following Saturday or such other period of 7

days’ duration which the employer may establish as the customary pay period.

Minimum overtime wage

(1) Where any employee is required to work more than 48 hours a week, hours so

worked shall constitute overtime and the employer shall pay for these hours at a

rate of not less than time and one-half the minimum rate.

(2) Despite subsection (1), an employee in the transport industry shall be paid at a rate

of not less than time and one-half the minimum rate set in this Order for time

worked in excess of 96 hours in any two consecutive weeks.

(3) Despite subsection (1), the employer of an employee who is required to work in

excess of 48 hours in a week and who is employed in a building which includes his

or her place of residence as a health or personal care worker, watch, janitor or

building superintendent, may pay at the minimum rate for the hours worked in

excess of 48 hours.

(4) Despite subsection (1), the employer of an employee who is

(

a) employed in work on a farm that is directly related to the primary

production of eggs, milk, grain, seeds, fruit, vegetables, Christmas trees,

Christmas wreaths, maple products, honey, tobacco, pigs, cattle, sheep,

poultry, or animal furs; and

(

b) required to work in excess of 48 hours in a week,

may pay the employee at the minimum rate set out in

Section 6 for hours worked

in excess of 48 hours.

Call in

(1) Where an employer recalls an employee to work outside the employee’s scheduled

working hours, the employer shall pay the employee for not less than 3 hours at the

minimum straight time rate notwithstanding that the employee works less than 3

hours.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a firefighter, police officer or hospital employee

who is required to work in an emergency.

(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to an employee employed in work on a farm whose

employment is directly related to the primary production of eggs, milk, grain,

seeds, fruit, vegetables, Christmas trees, Christmas wreaths, maple products,

honey, tobacco, pigs, cattle, sheep, poultry, or animal furs.

Waiting time

12 All time during which an employee waits for work on the premises of his or her

employer at the request of the employer shall be counted as time worked.

Piecework

13 Where an employer pays an employee on a piecework basis the employer shall pay not

less than the hourly rate fixed by this Order for the number of hours worked regardless of

the amount earned in accordance with the established piecework rates excepting

employees employed on a farm whose work is directly related to the harvesting of fruit,

vegetables and tobacco.

Uniforms

14 No employer who requires an employee to wear a uniform, apron or smock shall make

any charge or deduction from the minimum wage fixed by this Order for the purchase or

laundering of such uniform, apron or smock, except that where such uniform is made of

woolen or similar heavy material requiring dry-cleaning, the employer may charge the

cost of dry cleaning to the employee.

15 [repealed]

Legislative History

Reference Tables

Minimum Wage Order (General)

N.S. Reg.

5/1999

Labour Standards Code

Note: The

information in these tables does not form part of the regulations and is

compiled by the Office of the Registrar of Regulations for reference only.

Source Law

The current consolidation of the Minimum Wage Order (General) made under the Labour Standards Code includes all of the following regulations:

N.S.

Regulation

In force

date*

How in force

Royal Gazette

Part II Issue

5/1999

Nov

10, 1999

date

specified

Mar

12, 1999

122/1999

Nov

10, 1999

date

specified

Nov

19, 1999

78/2002

Oct 1,

date

specified

Jun

28, 2002

88/2003

Oct 1,

date

specified

May 2,

201/2003

Dec

12, 2003

date

specified

Dec 1,

109/2005

May

27, 2005

date

specified

Jun

10, 2005

56/2007

May 1,

date

specified

Mar 2,

122/2008

May 1,

date

specified

Apr

11, 2008

359/2008 1

Aug

19, 2008

date filed

Aug

29, 2008

257/2011

Sep 5,

date

specified (10 days

after date of publication in Royal Gazette)

Aug

26, 2011

14/2016

Jan

19, 2016

date

specified

Feb 5,

136/2016

Jul 4, 2016

date

specified

Jul

22, 2016

2/2019

Jan

28, 2019

date

specified

Jan

18, 2019

12/2020

Apr 1,

date

specified

Feb

14, 2020

19/2022

Oct 1,

date

specified

Feb

25, 2022

27/2023

Mar 6,

date

specified

Feb

24, 2023

136/2025

Oct 1,

date

specified

Jul

25, 2025

266/2025

Dec 1,

date

specified

Dec

12, 2025

The following regulations are not yet in force and are

not included in the current consolidation:

N.S.

Regulation

In force

date*

How in force

Royal Gazette

Part II Issue

*See subsection 3(6) of the Regulations Act for

rules about in force dates of regulations.

Amendments by Provision

ad. = added

am. = amended

fc. = fee change

ra. = reassigned

rep. = repealed

rs . = repealed and substituted

Provision affected

How affected

2(1) ...................................................

ra. as 2 201/2003

2(2) ...................................................

rep. 201/2003

2 ........................................................

ra. from 2(1) 201/2003 ; am. 136/2016

2(b) ..............................................

am. 201/2003

2(l) ...............................................

rs . 201/2003

2(m) .............................................

ad. 136/2016

3(1) ...................................................

am. 257/2011 (clause lettering removed)

3(1), defn . of “Consumer

Price Index” ..................................................

ad. 257/2011 ; am. 14/2016

3(1), defn . of

“experienced employee” ..................................................

ad. 257/2011 ; rep. 12/2020

3(1)(

d) defn . of

“harvesting of fruit, vegetables and tobacco” ...........

rep. 201/2003

3(1), defn . of

“inexperienced employee” ................................

rep. 12/2020

3(1), defn . of “Low Income

(Before Tax) Cut-Off” ...........................

ad. 257/2011 ; rep. 14/2016

3(1), defn . of “projected

annual Consumer Price Index” ............

ad. 14/2016

4 ........................................................

rep. 12/2020

6 ........................................................

rs . 78/2002, 88/2003,

109/2005, 56/2007, 122/2008, 257/2011, 12/2020

6(1) ..............................................

rep. 14/2016 ;

rep. 19/2022

6(2) ..............................................

rep. 14/2016 ;

rs . 19/2022; am. 27/2023,

136/2025, 266/2025

6(2A) ...........................................

ad. 27/2023 ; rep. 136/2025

6(3) ..............................................

am. 14/2016; rs . 2/2019; am.

19/2022, 266/2025

6(3A) ...........................................

ad. 2/2019

6(4) ..............................................

am. 2/2019; rs . 27/2023; am.

136/2025

6A .....................................................

ad. 257/2011

6 A( 1) ...........................................

am. 14/2016, 2/2019, 12/2020, 19/2022, 27/2023,

136/2025

8(1) ...................................................

rs . 78/2002, 88/2003,

122/2008, 257/2011

8(3) ...................................................

am. 14/2016

10(2) .................................................

am. 201/2003

10(3) .................................................

rs . 122/1999; am. 201/2003

10(4) .................................................

rs . 201/2003

11(2) .................................................

am. 122/1999

11(3) .................................................

am. 201/2003

15 ......................................................

rep. 2/2019

Note that changes to headings are not

included in the above table.

Editorial Notes and Corrections:

Note

Effective

date

N.S. Reg. 122/2008 is amended by N.S. Reg. 359/2008 to

correct a typographical error in the table in amending item 2 by striking out

“$4.45” and substituting “$3.45”.

Repealed and Superseded:

N.S.

Regulation

Title

In force

date

Repealed

date

103/1991

General Minimum Wage Order (sets minimum wage effective January 1, 1989)

Oct 1, 1991

Jan 1, 1993

239/1992

Minimum Wage Order—General

Jan 1, 1993

Oct 1, 1996

89/1996

Minimum Wage Order (General)

Oct 1, 1996

Oct 1, 1999

Note: Only

regulations that are specifically repealed and replaced and for which

consolidated versions exist appear in this table. It may not reflect the entire history of

regulations on this subject matter.