Ontario Severance Pay Calculator
1 week per year of service, max 8 weeks notice. Severance (separate) applies at large employers for 5+ year employees.
Employment Standards Act, 2000, s. 57 (notice), s. 64 (severance)
Employee details
Employment Standards Act, 2000, s. 57 (notice), s. 64 (severance)
Weekly equivalent: $1,250.00 (annual ÷ 52)
Ontario s.64 — Statutory Severance
Severance is a separate entitlement that stacks on top of notice. It only applies to employees with 5+ years of service at eligible employers.
Service
3.0 years
36 complete months · $1,250.00/week
Pay in Lieu of Notice
$3,750.00
3 weeks minimum
Statutory Severance (s.64)
$0.00
Not triggered by current inputs
Statutory Minimum Total
$3,750.00
Per Employment Standards Act, 2000, s. 57 (notice), s. 64 (severance)
How termination pay works in Ontario
Under Employment Standards Act, 2000, s. 57 (notice), s. 64 (severance), an employee in Ontario who is terminated without cause is entitled to a statutory minimum amount of notice — or pay equivalent to that notice period if the employer chooses not to have the employee work it out.
The schedule below shows the statutory minimum in weeks at several common tenure points. To convert to dollars, multiply the weeks figure by the employee's regular weekly wage (use the calculator above for a live calculation).
| Length of service | Statutory notice |
|---|---|
| 3 months | 1 week |
| 6 months | 1 week |
| 1 year | 2 weeks |
| 2 years | 2 weeks |
| 3 years | 3 weeks |
| 5 years | 5 weeks |
| 7 years | 7 weeks |
| 10 years | 8 weeks |
| 15 years | 8 weeks |
| 20 years | 8 weeks |
+ Ontario statutory severance (s.64)
Ontario is the only province with a statutory severance entitlement in addition to notice. Under ESA s.64, severance is owed when BOTH of these apply:
- •The employee has 5 or more years of continuous service.
- •The employer has an Ontario payroll of $2.5 million or more, OR has terminated 50+ employees within a six-month window due to a permanent business discontinuance.
Severance is paid at 1 week per year of service (with partial years pro-rated by months) up to a 26-week cap. It is in addition to notice, not instead of it — an eligible 10-year employee receives 8 weeks notice + 10 weeks severance = 18 weeks total.
Special rules & edge cases
- •Common-law reasonable notice almost always exceeds the ESA minimum — a senior employee with 15 years of service may be entitled to 18-24 months rather than the 8-week statutory cap.
- •Statutory severance under s.64 is in addition to notice, not instead of it. An eligible 10-year employee receives 8 weeks notice + 10 weeks severance = 18 weeks total.
- •Mass terminations (50+ employees within a 4-week window) trigger longer notice periods under ESA s.58 — between 8 and 16 weeks depending on group size.
Common-law reasonable notice
The figures above are the statutory floor. Common-law reasonable notice under the Bardal factors — age, length of service, character of employment, and availability of similar employment — is usually longer. A 15-year senior manager in Ontario may be entitled to 18–24 months of reasonable notice where the statutory cap is 8 weeks. Unless the employment contract contains a clear and lawful termination clause limiting the entitlement to the statutory minimum, the employee keeps their common-law rights. Always consult employment counsel before finalizing a package.
Severance rules in other provinces
British Columbia
1 week after 3 months, 2 weeks after 1 year, 3 weeks at 3 years + 1 per additional year, max 8 weeks.
Alberta
1 week after 3 months, stepping up to 8 weeks at 10+ years of service.
Saskatchewan
1 week after 13 weeks of service, stepping up to 8 weeks at 10+ years.
Manitoba
1 week after 30 days, stepping up to 8 weeks at 10+ years of service.
New Brunswick
2 weeks after 6 months, 4 weeks after 5 years of service.
Nova Scotia
1 week after 3 months, stepping up to 8 weeks at 10+ years of service.
Run Ontario offboarding end-to-end.
Hibiscus HR turns this calculation into an audited offboarding workflow — ROE filing on Service Canada V2.0, termination letter, final pay, equipment checklist, and the audit trail to prove every step happened.