Wages alone don't tell the story. Compare two legal employers on what actually ends up in your pocket and your retirement savings each year — vacation, stat holiday pay, pension match, health benefits, the works.
True Total Compensation — BC Employers Compared
Updated April 23, 2026 · 2026 CRA payroll formulas
Two employers posting identical hourly wages can produce dramatically different annual take-home and retirement savings. The calculator below compares two employers side-by-side on wage, vacation pay, stat holiday pay, performance bonus, shift premiums, extended health, and pension match — running each through 2026 federal + BC tax, CPP, CPP2, and EI deductions to show what actually lands in the worker's pocket and retirement account.
| Benefit component | Generic | CommunityPlus 1-yr | CommunityPlus 8-yr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vacation & sick pay | 6.0% | 8.0% | 16.0% |
| Stat holiday & avg day pay | 6.6% | 7.4% | 7.4% |
| Performance bonus | 0.0% | 2.0% | 3.0% |
| Shift premiums | 0.0% | 2.9% | 5.8% |
| Extended Health Plan | 0.0% | 2.8% | 2.8% |
| Employer pension match | 0.0% | 4.0% | 10.0% |
Why include pension match in total compensation?
Employer-funded RRSP or pension contributions are deferred wages that compound in the worker's retirement account. A 4% match on a $52,000 salary is $2,080/year of real, vested value — not a perk to discount. The calculator adds employer pension into total value alongside take-home because both come out of the same total-compensation pool.
Are the payroll numbers accurate against PDOC?
Yes, within ~$1 per year. The calculator uses the CRA T4127 Option 1 formula (same source as the CRA Payroll Deductions Online Calculator), including the F5A adjustment that reduces taxable income by the employee's CPP base contribution plus CPP2. Federal and BC tax brackets, BPAs, CPP/EI rates, and BC tax reduction thresholds all come from 2026 published rates.