Coroner Pay Increase
B.C. Government Boosts Community Coroners' Pay by 55% After Decade of Stagnation
British Columbia is giving community coroners a major pay raise — 55% more per hour — after years of complaints that the job paid too little. According to Winnipeg Free Press, the hourly rate jumped from $32 to $49.77, effective June 1.
The BC Coroners Service is now looking to fill about 40 vacant positions across dozens of communities, NS News reported. It marks the first pay increase for these workers in roughly a decade.
A Decade Without a Raise Finally Ends
Community coroners in B.C. had not seen a pay bump in about ten years. That long stretch without an increase drew repeated complaints from workers in the field. The low wages made it hard to attract and keep people willing to do a demanding and often difficult job.
The June 1 raise changes that picture sharply. Going from $32 to $49.77 per hour is a $17.77 jump. Airdrie City View noted the increase follows years of pressure on the province to act.
40 Vacant Posts Signal a Staffing Crisis
The BC Coroners Service posted a job ad that revealed roughly 40 open spots. That is a large number of vacancies for a service that covers death investigations across the province. Narcity reported that the positions span dozens of communities.
Community coroners work in smaller towns and rural areas. They investigate deaths and help determine cause and manner. Filling these roles is critical — gaps in coverage can delay death investigations and leave families waiting for answers.
What Community Coroners Actually Do
Community coroners are not the same as medical examiners. They are trained officers who respond to deaths in their local area. They work alongside police, doctors, and families to piece together what happened when someone dies unexpectedly.
The work can be emotionally heavy and logistically complex, especially in remote parts of B.C. Low pay made recruitment tough for years. The 55% raise is meant to bring wages more in line with the demands of the role, St. Albert Gazette reported.
B.C. Hopes Higher Pay Closes the Staffing Gap
The province is now actively recruiting to fill those 40 vacancies. The higher wage is the main tool B.C. is using to attract applicants. Officials hope the raise will make the role competitive enough to bring in qualified candidates quickly.
Whether the pay bump is enough to close the gap remains to be seen. But at nearly $50 an hour, the role is now significantly more attractive than it was just weeks ago. Brandon Sun noted the increase is the first of its kind in the public sector in ten years.
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