Caregiver Pay Rates & Increases

Overview

Caregiver pay rates are a core operational and financial variable for TheKey, directly affecting caregiver recruitment and retention, client billing margins, and competitive market positioning. Pay rates are set against local minimum wage floors, structured as a percentage of client billing rates, and reviewed regularly in response to statutory wage changes, market conditions, and individual caregiver performance. Because minimum wage legislation varies significantly across U.S. and Canadian markets — and changes frequently — managing pay rate compliance and margin integrity is an ongoing, multi-stakeholder process.

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Key People

• Audra Williams — Led communications on minimum wage-driven pay rate adjustments for live-in and hourly caregivers; involved in Canadian rate card reviews.
• Timothy (Tim) Thomas — Director of Client Care & Development (Montreal franchise); central figure in 2018 minimum wage response and ongoing rate discussions.
• Sandra Daoust — Managed individual caregiver pay raise approvals and communications; required to sign off before Timothy confirmed changes.
• Melissa Reyes — Drove the 2025 Rate Card Review process; defined standardized metrics including Aug–Oct average caregiver pay rate and margin per Planful.
• Teresa Heit — Participated in 2025 rate card review.
• Chen Xie — Led market rate card discussions in 2023; established the structural rule that caregiver wages must be under 50% of billing rate.
• Chuck Terlesky — Regional manager involved in Canadian minimum wage compliance tracking and ensuring teams raised caregiver pay before legal deadlines.
• Christa Carter-Mark — Primary communicator for British Columbia and federal Canadian minimum wage updates.
• Irin Eva — Tracked individual caregivers below minimum wage thresholds during 2023 hike; coordinated with Chuck Terlesky.
• Michele Sazant — Handled individual pay increase requests in 2018; documented caregiver-level rate changes.
• Angie Markwell — Participated in 2023 Canadian rate card discussions.

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Processes & Policies

Pay Rate Structure

• Caregiver (CG) wages are structured so that the CG wage is less than 50% of the billing rate, including allowed exceptions approved by the Regional Director. [Re: Canadian Rate Cards — 2023-04-20 — Angie Markwell]
• Rate types tracked separately: regular hourly, overtime (OT), flex, and live-in rates. OT and flex are excluded from standard margin calculations.
• Live-in pay rates are subject to separate review when minimum wage increases, as they may be calculated on a per-day basis. [Minimum Wage Increase | Live-in Pay Rates — 2024-01-02 — Audra Williams]

Minimum Wage Compliance

• When statutory minimum wages increase, all caregivers paid at or below the new floor must be raised before the legal deadline.
• Compliance tracking is managed regionally; HR (Irin Eva) identifies affected employees and notifies the relevant regional manager (e.g., Chuck Terlesky) to action raises. [Re: Minimum Wage Hike 2023 — 2023-08-23 — Chuck Terlesky]
• Travel, mileage, and training time must be paid at minimum wage. [General_Manager_Playbook.txt]

Individual Pay Raise Requests

• Pay raise requests follow a defined approval chain: requests surface to the office manager (Sandra Daoust), who approves and then confirms with Timothy Thomas before the rate takes effect.
• A standard one-year waiting period applies before caregivers are eligible for merit-based increases, separate from mandatory minimum wage adjustments. [Pay Increase Requests — 2018-07-11 — Michele Sazant]
• Anniversary bill rate increases follow a separate SOP referenced in the General Manager Playbook.

Rate Card Reviews

• Rate cards are reviewed periodically at the regional and national level. Metrics evaluated include: Aug–Oct average regular hourly caregiver pay rate, new client billing rate, November caregiver margin per Planful, and OT exposure.
• If caregiver pay rates or OT targets are missed, billing rates are increased to compensate (e.g., $37 market rate adjusted to $40). [Reminder: Final Rate Cards Implemented 4/10 — 2023-04-09 — Chen Xie]

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Timeline & Key Events

| Date | Event |

|------|-------|

| 2018-03 | Regional discussion on handling minimum wage increase for both clients and caregivers; billing rates already above $25/hour. [Price Increase — 2018-03-14 — Tim Thomas] |

| 2018-04 | Quebec minimum wage increased ~7%; described as "unforeseen" pressure on all pay rates. Tim Thomas pushed to raise all clients correspondingly. [Re: FW: Pricing - April 2018 — 2018-04-23] |

| 2018-05 | Individual caregivers (e.g., Melinda Lynn Pinos) raised to new $12.00 minimum wage floor effective May 1, 2018. [Melinda Lynn Pinos — 2018-05-14] |

| 2018-07 | Formal pay increase request process documented; average billing rate $25.53, average pay rate $12.26. [Hiring goals — 2018-06-07] |

| 2023-03 | Market rate card review initiated across all regions; current bill rates, pay rates with/without OT, and live-in rates collected. [Market Rate Card Discussions — 2023-03-16] |

| 2023-04 | Canadian rate cards finalized and implemented April 10, 2023. Montreal/Toronto market rate: $37; complex rate: $42; CG wages: $17.50–$19.50. [Re: Canadian Rate Cards — 2023-04-19] |

| 2023-08 | Minimum wage hike compliance review; Chuck Terlesky directed to raise affected caregivers before deadline. |

| 2024-01 | Multiple U.S. areas had minimum wage increases effective January 1, 2024; live-in pay rates flagged for review. |

| 2024-04 | Canadian federal minimum wage update: several provinces adjusted (e.g., New Brunswick to $15.30, effective April 1, 2024); future increases to be indexed to CPI. [Canada's Federal Minimum Wage Increases — 2024-04-25] |

| 2024-12 | 2025 Rate Card Review launched; Melissa Reyes distributed standardized metrics framework to regional leaders. |

| 2025 | Minimum wage rise to $19.10/hour noted as driving up rates; competitor pricing ($36–$38/hour; $450/day live-in) creating margin pressure. [2025 Site_ Weekly Growth Activity Actions Plans_.xlsx] |

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Key Decisions

• Billing rates must increase in tandem with minimum wage increases to protect margins; passing cost to clients is standard practice, with client communication letters prepared in advance. [Increase Letter — 2018-04-04]
• CG wage cap at <50% of billing rate established as a structural rule for Canadian markets in 2023.
• Mandatory vs. merit raises are treated separately: minimum wage compliance raises do not reset or satisfy the annual merit review cycle.
• Live-in rates require separate review at each minimum wage change, as standard per-hour calculations may not apply directly.
• Future Canadian minimum wages to track CPI per amendments to provincial Employment Standards Acts (BC confirmed; New Brunswick confirmed). [Canada's Federal Minimum Wage Increases — 2024-04-25]

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Open Questions & Gaps

• The 2025 Rate Card outcomes are not documented in available emails — it is unclear what rates were ultimately approved or implemented.
• The exact approval authority for exceptions above the 50% CG wage/billing ratio (noted as "RD approval") is not fully detailed.
• U.S. market rate cards are less visible in the record than Canadian ones; it is unclear whether a parallel <50% wage/rate rule applies across all U.S. markets.
• The process for communicating pay increases to caregivers (timing, method, written confirmation) is not consistently documented.
• Whether the $19.10/hour minimum wage pressure noted in the 2025 planning document has been resolved through rate card adjustments is unknown.

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Related Topics

1. Client Billing Rates & Pricing

2. Canadian Operations & Compliance

3. Caregiver Retention & Recruitment

4. Market Rate Card Review Process

5. Payroll & Compensation Administration