Payroll is where daycare owners lose the most evenings — and where mistakes cost real penalties. Here's the BC owner's map. (Educational only; confirm with your accountant or payroll provider.)
Every pay period
- Gross pay — hours × rate, overtime at 1.5× past 8 hours/day or 40/week in BC, stat pay where it applies.
- Withhold — income tax, CPP, EI from the employee's pay.
- Add employer costs — matching CPP, 1.4× EI, WorkSafeBC premiums.
- Remit to CRA on your remitter schedule (usually monthly for small employers) — late remittances are the most common and most avoidable penalty.
- Keep stubs and records — employees are entitled to pay statements showing hours, rate, deductions.
BC specifics that bite
- Vacation pay: 4% minimum (6% after five years) — accrue it visibly so it never surprises your cash flow.
- Stat holidays: eligibility rules (30 days + 15 of last 30 worked) mean part-timers often qualify — check, don't assume.
- ECE Wage Enhancement: if you receive it, it flows through payroll and must show correctly on pay.
The workflow that saves hours
The painful part isn't the math — it's assembling hours from paper timesheets. If your educators clock in/out digitally, payroll prep becomes: review hours → confirm → generate. Mitten does exactly this: staff hours tracked in the app become gross pay, overtime, stat pay and vacation accrual with printable stubs and a CSV for your accountant or payroll provider. (Mitten preps gross pay; CRA deductions and remittance stay with you or a licensed payroll provider.) New-hire setup is self-serve too — staff submit their details, banking and SIN through an encrypted onboarding link instead of a paper folder.
Run your daycare on Mitten — free to start
Mitten does everything in this guide — daily reports, photos, messaging, billing, even payroll prep — free for your first 5 children, then just $20/mo + $2 per child.
Start free — no card needed → See the live demoFrequently asked questions
- What payroll deductions do I make for daycare staff in Canada?
- Withhold income tax, CPP contributions and EI premiums from each pay, add the employer share of CPP and EI, and remit to CRA on your schedule. Issue T4s each February.
- How does vacation pay work in BC?
- Minimum 4% of gross wages (rising to 6% after five years of employment) — paid out each cheque or accrued and paid when vacation is taken.
- What about stat holidays in BC?
- Eligible employees (30 days employed + worked 15 of the last 30 days) get an average day’s pay for the stat; if they work it, premium pay rules apply.