Real hourly cost of a CCQ construction worker: wage, benefits and charges
The collective-agreement wage is only the first line of what a construction employee costs. Pick the trade, the sector and the classification: the tool adds up everything the employer pays on top, with the rates published for 2026. No sign-up: the calculation stays in your browser.
Real cost of one hour worked
$69.30 /h
That is 1.51 times the $45.76 wage rate. A 40-hour week: $2,772.00.
Work out the rate to bill →Opens the hourly-rate calculator with A, B, C and D filled in: equipment, your overhead and your margin remain.
Layer by layer
- A — Wage rate
- $45.76
- B — Construction fringe benefits
- $14.55
- 13% indemnity (vacation, holidays, sick leave)
- $5.95
- Pension plan
- $5.21
- MÉDIC insurance
- $2.93
- 9% tax on insurance
- $0.26
- Training fund
- $0.20
- C — Government charges
- $8.51
- QPP (employer share)
- $3.26
- Employment insurance (1.4 × employee)
- $0.94
- QPIP (employer share)
- $0.31
- FSS
- $0.85
- CNESST
- $3.14
- D — Contributions
- $0.48
- CCQ levy (0.75%)
- $0.39
- Compensation fund
- $0.02
- Employer associations
- $0.03
- Sectoral contribution (residential)
- $0.04
- Real cost of the hour
- $69.30
Indicative. QPP, employment insurance and QPIP are taken at the full rate: once their annual ceiling is reached, late in the year, they no longer cost anything for this employee. Premiums (overtime, evening, night, travel) and the safety-equipment allowance are not included.
What the tool adds up
- A — the wage rate from the 2025-2029 collective-agreement scale, in force since April 26, 2026.
- B — construction fringe benefits: the 13% indemnity remitted to the CCQ, the pension plan, MÉDIC insurance and its 9% tax, the training fund.
- C — government charges: QPP, employment insurance, QPIP, FSS and CNESST, computed on the wage plus the 13% — the base the CCQ uses, and the most common mistake is to compute them on the wage alone.
- D — contributions: the CCQ levy, the compensation fund, employer associations and, in residential, the sectoral contribution.
What next? This cost is not a price. The hourly-rate calculator adds equipment, overhead and margin, starting from these four layers.
Frequently asked questions
Where do the tool’s wage rates come from?
From the 2025-2029 collective-agreement scale, the same one BatiCore uses for the employee record. The rates shown are those in force since the April 26, 2026 increase: 5% in the institutional and commercial, industrial, civil engineering and roads, and heavy residential sectors, 5.5% in light residential. If there is any discrepancy, the CCQ notes that the official collective agreements prevail.
Why is the real cost so much higher than the wage?
Because the employer pays much more than the hourly rate: the 13% indemnity remitted to the CCQ (6% annual vacation, 5.5% statutory holidays, 1.5% sick leave), the pension plan ($5.21 an hour for a journeyperson, $4.29 for an apprentice), MÉDIC insurance and its 9% tax, the training fund, then the charges computed on the wage plus the 13%: QPP, employment insurance, QPIP, FSS and CNESST.
Which CNESST rate should I pick?
The one for your classification unit, shown on your assessment notice. The tool lists the 2026 general rates of the construction units — from $2.04 to $7.88 per $100 of payroll — plus $0.04 for ASP Construction, and suggests a unit from the trade. If your business has a personalized rate, enter it: that is the one that counts.
Is this the price I should bill?
No: it is what one hour worked costs. To get a rate to bill, you still add the truck and tools, your overhead and your margin, then account for the hours you can actually bill. The “Work out the rate to bill” button opens the hourly-rate calculator with these first four layers already filled in.
- CCQ — Salaire et taux (outil officiel des taux, majorations 2026 par secteur)
- CCQ — Conventions collectives 2025-2029
- CCQ — Paies de vacances (13 % : 6 % congés, 5,5 % fériés, 1,5 % maladie)
- CCQ — Cotisations au régime de retraite (taux au 26 avril 2026)
- CCQ — Conventions collectives : du nouveau pour le rapport mensuel de mai 2026 (20 avril 2026)
- ACQ — Grille des taux de salaire IC/I au 26 avril 2026 (PDF)
- ACRGTQ — Coûts horaires, annexe D au 26 avril 2026 (PDF)
- AECQ — Cotisation de l’employeur
- CNESST — Table des taux 2026 (PDF)
- Revenu Québec — Principaux changements pour l’année 2026 (RRQ, RQAP)
- EDSC — Taux de cotisation à l’assurance-emploi pour 2026
The amounts and rules cited are those displayed by these bodies on that date; they change (indexation, decrees). Check at the source before acting — and this article is not legal advice.
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