Workers' compensation in Canada is mandatory, provincially run and employer-funded. In most provinces, the moment you engage even one worker you must register with your provincial board, and there is no national opt-out into private insurance: the provincial board is the sole insurer for covered work. In construction, you will also need clearance certificates to get paid, because principals will not release money to a sub whose account is not in good standing. Premium rates are set by each board and by classification, so there is no single national construction number.
Why coverage is mandatory
The provincial board both insures injured workers and protects you. In exchange for funding the system, employers get protection from most lawsuits by injured workers. Skipping registration does not save money; it leaves an injury uninsured, exposes you to liability, and in construction it stops you getting paid because you cannot produce a clearance certificate.
Register with your provincial board
Find your board and register before the crew starts. The board and the registration trigger by jurisdiction:
- Ontario: WSIB, as soon as workers are engaged, with no minimum count.
- British Columbia: WorkSafeBC, all employers with workers; out-of-province businesses working in BC beyond a short threshold of days a year must also register.
- Alberta: WCB Alberta, if you employ staff or intend to hire within 90 days.
- Quebec: CNESST. Quebec does not have a "WCB"; the Commission des normes, de l'equite, de la sante et de la securite du travail covers workers in Quebec.
- Manitoba: WCB Manitoba; Saskatchewan: WCB Saskatchewan; New Brunswick: WorkSafeNB; Newfoundland and Labrador: WorkplaceNL; PEI: WCB PEI. All employers register.
- Nova Scotia: WCB Nova Scotia, mandatory for employers with three or more employees and voluntary below that.
- Northwest Territories and Nunavut: WSCC, all businesses regardless of size or structure. Yukon: YWSCC, all employers.
Owner and director coverage
You as the owner are usually not automatically covered, because the system covers workers, not proprietors, partners or directors. Most boards offer optional personal coverage you can buy for yourself. In Alberta, for example, optional personal coverage carries a minimum annual premium and a coverage cap. If you want to be covered for your own site injuries, you must elect in; do not assume your business registration covers you personally.
Premium rates: set per board, per classification
Each board sets its own rates, and within a board the rate depends on your classification (the kind of work you do). There is no single national construction premium, and rates change year to year. An older construction range that still circulates online is out of date and should not be relied on. Get your actual rate from your board's current published schedule for your classification, not from a number quoted second-hand. Boards also publish an average construction-sector rate per $100 of assessable payroll, but your own rate depends on your specific class and claims history, so always check your board's current schedule.
Clearance certificates: the construction lifeline
A clearance certificate (or clearance letter) is proof that a contractor's account is active, reports are filed and premiums are current. It tells the principal hiring that sub that they will not be chased for the sub's unpaid premiums. The rules differ by province and the detail matters:
- Ontario (WSIB): clearances are valid for up to 90 days, the principal's name does not appear on them, and you verify status through the WSIB online portal.
- BC (WorkSafeBC): the clearance letter must be addressed to the specific principal hiring the sub; a letter addressed to someone else does not protect the current payer.
- Alberta (WCB): the same rule, a separate letter per principal, obtained before any payment including the final one.
- Quebec (CNESST): a three-stage process, a conformity validation before the contract, a conformity follow-up during it, and a conformity attestation at the end. After the principal starts the process the contractor has 14 days to approve or object to the contract details.
Best practice: do not release any progress draw or final payment to a subcontractor without a current, valid clearance certificate for the province where the work was done, and keep the documentation for at least three years.
Common mistakes
- Assuming you are covered as the owner. You usually are not; buy optional personal coverage if you want it.
- Quoting a stale construction premium. Rates change and are class-specific; use your board's current schedule.
- Paying a sub without a clearance. You can be left liable for the sub's unpaid premiums.
- Using a clearance addressed to the wrong party in BC or Alberta. It must name the principal who is paying.
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