Are you interested in working as a forklift operator in Canada? If so, this article is for you. Forklift operators usually operate and manage trucks that can load and unload materials, typically those in storage areas, docks, and other related facilities.
In this article, we will learn more about how much forklift operators earn based on a video by an OFW working there. The video on YouTube actually talks about not just the gross salary, but also goes into complete detail. This information will definitely help you decided if you want to pursue this career or not.
Disclaimer: The information posted here is based on the personal experiences shared by the OFW in the video below. Please let this post serve as a guide only. If you have specific questions, you may ask the OFW by commenting on their video on their accounts.
Salary of a Forklift Operator in Canada
This article summarizes the content in a YouTube video produced by Carino Family, a relatively popular OFW YouTube channel, whose father is a forklift operator. The channel details their life in Canada, and most of their videos reach a thousand views or more.
If you want to learn more about the video this article is based on, or if you want access to their other videos, then check out the link below:
In the video, a typical pay slip of a forklift operator was shown. This pay slip shows some really important details regarding what the breakdown of the salary is of a forklift, and so we can really learn more about the system and what you can do to earn more money doing the same job.
Details of a Typical Forklift Operator Pay Slip
First of all, as a forklift operator, you can check and download your pay slip online. Among other things, it contains the following information:
- Description – this part of the pay slip shows the kind of payments or deductions listed in your pay slip. This part includes your bonuses, premiums, overtime, paid salaries, regular salary, holidays, trainings, vacation pays and more.
- Dates – this part of the pay shows the days that correspond to the given payments or deductions. In the video, the dates corresponding to each description are the same; encompassing a two-week period from July 26 to August 8, 2020. Indeed, they get paid every two weeks.
- Hours – this shows how many hours you spent for a particular earning description. For example, he spent 17 hours on overtime. In the pay slip, it is indicated that you earn 1.5 times your regular rate for your overtime hours.
- Rate – this shows how much you earn per hour for each description in the pay slip.
- Amount – this shows the product of the hours and the rate.
- Statutory Taxes – this is a bigger section of the pay slip. It has its own sub components as well and they will be discussed at the bottom.
Salary Rates of a Factory Worker
He mentioned that in Canada, you get paid every two weeks. As a forklift operator, you need to work 80 hours per 2 weeks.
Here’s a list of payments he received during the two-week pay slip featured in the video.
- Regular – He said that his regular rate is 22.85 CAD per hour. In the first pay slip shown in the video, it shows that he only worked 72 regular hours. Where’s the missing 8 hours he had to complete? He earned a total amount of 1,645.26 CAD for his regular hours of work.
- Statutory Holiday – Well, as it turns out, 8 hours were missing because these were holidays during that two-week period. As it turns out, he was still paid the regular rate during that 8 hours. This is indicated in the pay slip as hours during statutory holiday.
- Bonus – He also received a performance bonus during that 2-week period, amounting to 238.19 CAD.
- Freezer Premium – once you enter the freezer, you get 1 CAD / per hour. In the video, it was shown that he spent 0.85 hour in the freezer, and for that he received 0.87 CAD.
- Overtime 1.5 – In the video, it shows that he worked overtime for 17 hours. Included in these 17 hours is the 8-hour holiday when he decided to work. His rate working overtime is 1.5 times that of the regular rate, or 34.275 CAD per hour. The total amount of overtime pay he received is 582.71 CAD.
The total amount he earned, in gross, is 2,649.83 CAD, which is equivalent to 100,900 Philippine Pesos in just two weeks.
Salary Deductions
The amount measured above doesn’t include the deductions yet. He said that in Canada, there are many deductions, but that’s okay since there are many benefits as well. The benefits include health care, education for the children and other child benefits.
In the pay slip, the following deductions are shown:
- Canada Pension Plan (CPP) – this amounts to 133.35 CAD. This pension plan is important so that you will receive money during your retirement. Retirement is typically during the age of 65 years old.
- Employment Insurance (EI) – this amounts to 41.87 CAD. This ensures that when you have paternity or maternity leave, if you get sick, or you lose your job, you will still receive a biweekly salary.
- Federal Income Tax (FIT) – this one amounts to 333.93 CAD.
- Province Income Tax (PIT) – this one amounts to 215.49 CAD.
The total amount of tax deducted is 724.64 CAD.
Other deductions, also known as pre tax deductions, include the following:
- Union Dues – 32.00 CAD. This is because the employees in the company he is working in has a union.
- ESOP LCL – 91.41 CAD. This is a voluntary deduction, but if you choose to avail of this, your employer will match this plus add 22.85 CAD. So all of this goes to your savings. Every pay day, you have savings of 91.41 + 22.85 CAD. If you have to use your savings, you can always withdraw it.
- Long Term Disability (Saskatchewan) – 15.23 CAD
- Medical (Saskatchewan) – 2.22 CAD
Summary of Net Salary
To recap, he earned a gross income of 2,649.83 CAD, but after deductions, what is left is 1,783.33 CAD. That net salary is equivalent to around 68,000 Philippine Pesos.
He also showed another pay slip in the video. This next pay was from May 31 to June 13, 2020, and the key difference is that this time, he has an absence. In fact, he only worked from 68.50 hours in those two weeks instead of the standard 80 hours.
Because of these absences, his gross income is reduced to 2,136.74 CAD, and the net income after all taxes and other deductions is 1,498.02 CAD, which is equivalent to around 57,000 Philippine Pesos.
One key thing that he shared is that because his gross salary is lower, his tax deductions also lowered. He said that’s what typically happens in Canada.
OFW Family Life in Canada
Some people say that living in Canada as a family is hard. This, however, depends on various circumstances, but in the Carino Family channel, where the video mentioned above is based on, we get a glimpse into what a typical OFW family life is like in Canada.
Their setup is that the kids are still young; two are going to elementary school while the third is a toddler too young to go to school.
As a result of having a toddler in the family, the husband and wife had come up with the following work arrangement to ensure that someone’s always looking after the baby.
The family made it a point to choose job shifts that don’t match. For example, the husband had to work in the afternoon up to midnight, while the wife works early morning to afternoon. That way, either the husband or the wife is looking after the baby.
This can be quite difficult at first; for this particular set up, sleep is compromised. For example, after going home from work at 12:30 AM, the husband had to wake up at 4 AM to cook breakfast for his wife, so that by around 5 AM the wife can go to work.
In the video, he even mentioned that you have to learn how to sleep like a chicken. In other words, sleep during times when you have a chance to close your eyes. A straight 8-hour sleep is not yet feasible for now, except during the weekends.
He mentioned, for example, that he sometimes steals a few shut eyes when the baby is at the living room couch, watching TV or playing. Since he knows that the baby is just staying put, he can cope up for lack of sleep in that manner.
Having said that, he did mention that it takes a lot of sacrifice for both the mother and father to work when you have a child that needs constant supervision. But this is the only way to earn adequate money and achieve their dreams and ambitions.
There you have it. In this article, you learned about what a typical salary is for a forklift operator in Canada. While the gross salary is high, there are lots of deductions. The overall net pay is still good, especially compared to similar jobs in the Philippines, and the deductions are worth the price since you will receive lots of benefits.