Across Canada, labour costs in the building maintenance sector are rising — through collective agreement renewals, annual minimum wage adjustments, and sector-specific regulatory changes. Quebec’s recently amended building service decree offers a detailed and concrete picture of where this trend is heading: a phased wage schedule to 2030, a new night shift differential, and revisions to the collective pension plan, all with defined timelines and enforceable minimums. For building managers and contractors anywhere in Canada, the numbers are worth understanding — not because the decree applies outside Quebec, but because it highlights what is happening across the industry.

On March 4, 2026, the Quebec government formally amended the Decree Respecting Building Service Employees, harmonizing the decree with the collective agreement negotiated between the Union des employé(e)s de service, Local 800 – FTQ, and the Association des entrepreneurs de services d’édifices Québec Inc. The decree applies across a large portion of Quebec including Montreal, its north and south shores, Laval, the Outaouais, the Laurentians, the Mauricie, and parts of the Eastern Townships, and is administered by the Comité paritaire de l’entretien d’édifices publics (CPEEP). A separate decree governs the rest of the province. Despite its name, it covers a broad range of buildings including offices, hotels, restaurants, healthcare facilities, schools, warehouses, and multi-unit residential buildings.

Wage schedule through 2030

The decree establishes a multi-year schedule of minimum hourly rates, giving employers a predictable framework for managing rising labour costs. The three wage classes reflect the nature of the work performed: Class A covers heavy-duty tasks such as floor treatment and window washing; Class B covers light work such as dusting, sweeping, and washroom maintenance; and Class C applies to work performed at height.

Note: The March 4th increase is not retroactive.

From March 2026 to November 2030, Class A and B rates will rise from $23.25 to $26.63 per hour, which is an increase of approximately 14.5 per cent. Class C rates follow a parallel trajectory, moving from $23.90 to $27.37.

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Night shift differential

The amended decree introduces a new night shift premium for workers whose scheduled hours fall predominantly between midnight and 8 a.m. The differential is phased in over three years:

By November 2028, workers on overnight schedules will earn an additional dollar per hour above the applicable class rate. For organizations that rely heavily on overnight crews — a common configuration in office tower and institutional cleaning — this represents a meaningful addition to labour costs that will need to be factored into operational budgets and service contracts now.

Collective pension plan

The regulation also amends the collective pension plan provisions. The employer’s contribution is set at $0.20 per paid hour for eligible employees who have attained permanent status. Notably, this contribution also applies retroactively to hours worked prior to an employee attaining that status — a detail that requires attention in payroll administration.

Other changes to working conditions

Beyond wages and the pension plan, the amendment brings several updates to working conditions. Minimum paid work periods have been extended from three to four hours in certain cases, and rules governing leave, absences, and medical documentation have been revised. Administrative reporting requirements to the parity committee have been updated, and seniority rules and provisions relating to annual and sick leave have been amended. Taken together, these adjustments modernize the regulatory framework and bring it into closer alignment with the terms negotiated in the sector’s collective agreement.

What this means for the industry

The cumulative weight of these changes will be felt differently depending on an organization’s workforce composition and contract structure. Contractors with large overnight teams, or a workforce where many employees are close to permanent status, will feel the financial pressure earliest. For those still operating under contracts priced at the old rates, that conversation with clients can’t wait.

Rising labour costs also tend to accelerate two broader trends in the building maintenance sector. The first is pressure to get leaner operationally with better task sequencing, tighter scheduling, and more systematic use of digital tools to track performance and justify costs. The second is a potential improvement in workforce stability. The building maintenance sector has historically struggled with recruitment and retention, and more competitive compensation — particularly the night shift premium — may help attract workers from other industries and reduce turnover among existing staff, which carries its own cost savings.

For building managers who rely on contracted cleaning services, the decree’s changes are a useful prompt to verify that their service providers are compliant and that contract terms reflect the updated cost realities. The CPEEP maintains up-to-date guidance and an employer’s guide at cpeep.qc.ca. For building managers navigating that conversation, how a service contract is structured — and how the contractor was selected in the first place — matters more than ever. A forthcoming article in this series examines the role of qualitative criteria in cleaning services tenders, and why price alone has never been a reliable basis for contractor selection.

Karl Bédard is Director at ValkarTech. He specializes in quality control and smart technology solutions for institutional and commercial facilities. He holds a bachelor’s degree in operations and Logistics Engineering from ÉTS Montréal (2022), is a certified internal auditor accredited by the Mouvement québécois de la qualité, and holds the LEED Green Associate designation.