Minimum piece rates for 15 hand-harvested farm crops in British Columbia will increase by 3.9% on Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024, the province said. The move aligns with the same percentage increase to the general minimum wage that took effect on June 1, 2024.
Under new legislation passed in spring 2024, minimum piece rates now rise each Dec. 31, following the average annual inflation rate from the previous year. The specified crops include peaches, apricots, brussels sprouts, daffodils, mushrooms, apples, beans, blueberries, cherries, grapes, pears, peas, prune plums, raspberries and strawberries, the province said.
Officials said this marks the latest in a series of increases that included an 11.5% jump in 2019 and 6.9% in January 2024. The farm-worker piece-rate system has been in effect in B.C. since 1981. HR professionals, employers and business leaders in the agriculture sector can expect the new rates to apply to each of the 15 crops by the end of the year.
The province said the annual alignment of piece-rate and general minimum wage increases is designed to keep pace with inflation and support farm workers’ earnings while providing employers with a consistent schedule for payroll planning.
