- Yukon minimum wage at a glance
- How Yukon compares with the rest of Canada
- The territory's own pay formulas
- Who isn't entitled to overtime
- What counts as wages in Yukon
- Who the Employment Standards Act doesn't cover
- Vacation and general holidays
- A Yukon employer's April checklist
- My verdict
- Frequently asked questions
The minimum wage in Yukon is $18.51 an hour, effective April 1, 2026. It goes up every April 1 by the previous year's rise in the Consumer Price Index, and it's the second-highest general minimum wage in Canada after Nunavut.
Yukon's rate is set under the territory's Employment Standards Act, and since a 2021 Employment Standards Board order the annual change has been automatic rather than a fresh political decision each year. Here's what employers need to pay, how the territory says to calculate it and where the exceptions are.
Yukon minimum wage at a glance
| Rule | Yukon, as of October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Minimum wage | $18.51 an hour from April 1, 2026 |
| When it changes | Every April 1 |
| How it changes | By the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index for the preceding year |
| Overtime | Overtime hours at 1.5 times the minimum wage in the territory's formula |
| Vacation pay | At least 4% of gross wages, starting after 14 days of continuous work |
| Vacation time | At least 2 weeks for every completed year |
How Yukon compares with the rest of Canada
| Jurisdiction | Minimum wage | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| Nunavut | $20.17 | 1 September 2026 |
| Yukon | $18.51 | 1 April 2026 |
| British Columbia | $18.25 | 1 June 2026 |
| Federal | $18.15 | 1 April 2026 |
| Northwest Territories | $17.20 | 1 September 2026 |
One consequence people miss: Yukon's rate is higher than the federal minimum. Federally regulated employers, such as banks, telecoms and interprovincial transport firms, normally follow the federal rate, but the federal rule says that where the provincial or territorial rate is higher, the employer pays the higher one. So a federally regulated worker in Whitehorse is owed $18.51, not $18.15. The national picture is in our minimum wage by province guide.
The territory's own pay formulas
Yukon's minimum wage fact sheet doesn't just give a rate. It sets out how to check that pay meets it for different kinds of work:
| How the employee is paid | Minimum wage owing |
|---|---|
| Hourly, entitled to overtime | (Standard hours x minimum wage) + (overtime hours x minimum wage x 1.5) |
| Hourly, not entitled to overtime | Hours worked x minimum wage |
| Salary, not entitled to overtime | Hours worked x minimum wage |
| Piecework | (Standard hours x minimum wage) + (overtime hours x minimum wage x 1.5) |
| Commission or taxi driving | Same formula, and the employer pays any shortfall between what's owing and the commission paid |
| Sitters | Exempt from the Act, so no minimum wage |
The commission rule is the one to watch. If an employee's commission for a pay period falls short of what the minimum wage formula says they're owed, you make up the difference. Commission-only pay doesn't get you out of the minimum.
Who isn't entitled to overtime
The fact sheet lists jobs exempt from overtime, including people employed in staking, line cutting, geological mapping, geochemical sampling or testing, geophysical surveying or manual stripping (other than drill operators and drill helpers), and anyone employed only as a watchman or caretaker unless their employer is a private security agency. Those employees are still owed the minimum wage for every hour, just not the overtime rate.
What counts as wages in Yukon
- Counts: any payment under the employment contract, any payment the Act requires, and travel allowances the regulations prescribe.
- Doesn't count: discretionary payments that aren't tied to hours, production or efficiency, and damages awarded in a wrongful dismissal case.
This matters if you're relying on a bonus to lift someone to the minimum. A discretionary bonus that isn't linked to hours or output doesn't count towards it.
Who the Employment Standards Act doesn't cover
The Act doesn't apply to territorial, First Nations or federal governments, to employees covered by a collective agreement unless that agreement falls short of the minimum standards, to employees excluded by regulation such as sitters hired casually to look after someone in a private home, or to federally regulated sectors.
Vacation and general holidays
Vacation pay starts once someone has been continuously employed for 14 days, at a minimum of 4% of gross wages, and vacation time builds up at no less than 2 weeks for every completed year. Yukon's general holidays are New Year's Day, Good Friday, Victoria Day, National Indigenous Peoples Day (June 21), Canada Day, Discovery Day (the third Monday in August), Labour Day, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (September 30), Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day and Christmas Day. Heritage Day, Easter Monday and Boxing Day aren't general holidays in Yukon.
Staff in Newfoundland fall under a different rate and different rules, covered in our guide to the Newfoundland minimum wage.
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A Yukon employer's April checklist
- Update every hourly rate to at least the new minimum for hours worked from April 1.
- Rerun the formula for each commissioned, piecework and salaried employee, because a pay plan that cleared the old rate may not clear the new one.
- Top up any shortfall in the same pay period rather than waiting for a complaint.
- Check that federally regulated staff in Yukon are on the Yukon rate whenever it's higher than the federal one.
- Keep vacation pay at 4% or more of gross wages on the new, higher pay.
If you also hire in British Columbia, its BC minimum wage rules change on a different date, so keep the two calendars separate.
My verdict
Yukon is one of the most expensive places in Canada to pay minimum wage, but it's also one of the most predictable: the change lands every April 1 and follows inflation. The fact sheet's formulas are the useful part for small employers, especially if you pay commission or piecework. Run each pay period through the right formula and top up any shortfall, and you're covered.
Hiring in more than one province or territory? Our Manitoba minimum wage guide sets out what applies there.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum wage in Yukon?
The minimum wage in Yukon is $18.51 an hour, effective April 1, 2026.
When does Yukon's minimum wage go up?
Every April 1, by the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index for the preceding year, under a 2021 Employment Standards Board order.
Is Yukon's minimum wage higher than the federal minimum wage?
Yes. Yukon's $18.51 is above the federal $18.15, so federally regulated employers in Yukon pay the higher Yukon rate.
Do commission employees in Yukon get minimum wage?
Yes. The employer must pay the difference between the minimum wage owing and the commission paid if the commission falls short.
When do Yukon employees start earning vacation pay?
After 14 days of continuous employment, at a minimum of 4% of gross wages.
