Production labourer: pay in Quebec and Greater Montreal
A production labourer does the basic work of a factory: feeding lines, helping machine operators, checking, sorting, packing and cleaning. In Quebec, Job Bank lists support services, miscellaneous manufacturing, wholesale trade, furniture and printing as the main employers. This page gives pay in the five Greater Montreal regions and what the NOC code actually measures.
- Quebec median
- $20/h
- Range
- $16.10 – $25.81/h
- Montreal
- $17.50/h
Guichet-Emplois (Job Bank), edition 2025 · CNP 95109
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Production labourer pay, region by region
| Region | Low | Median | High | vs Quebec | Offered in postings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All of Quebec | $16.10 | $20 | $25.81 | — | — |
| Montérégie | $16.75 | $20.82 | $26.38 | +4% | $20.25 (98) |
| Montréal | $16.10 | $17.50 | $23 | −13% | $20.44 (20) |
| Laval | $16.10 | $18 | $23 | −10% | — (7) |
| Lanaudière | $17.07 | $20.75 | $25.45 | +4% | $21.24 (28) |
| Laurentides | $17 | $20.34 | $27.75 | +2% | $19.91 (20) |
The table covers NOC 95109, “Other labourers in processing, manufacturing and utilities”: furniture, printing, clothing, electrical products, packaging, recyclable materials sorting. The only official exclusions are supervisors (92015, 92021, 92022, 92024). Labourers in plastics and tires (95104), metal fabrication (95101), food (95106) and wood (95103) are neighbouring groups.
Low, median and high wages published by Job Bank (NOC 95109), and pay offered in Greater Montreal job postings (6 months, February to August 2026); in brackets, the number of hourly postings — under ten, no median is shown.
Quebec median by file edition: 2023: $17.87/h · 2024: $19/h · 2025: $20/h.
What the job postings say
Of 179 postings on Job Bank in Greater Montreal (6 months, February to August 2026), 6% mention a night shift, 11% an evening shift and 6% weekends.
The block above shows the share of Greater Montreal postings that mention a night, evening or weekend shift: the most direct measure for anyone looking for night-shift production work. Job Bank lists a 35 to 40 hour week. In Quebec, 85% of people in this group work full time and 15% part time; only half work all year, and the rest work 39 weeks on average. In practice, the shift sets when you have to get to the plant and when you leave: before applying for evenings or nights, check the commute at those hours. For a part-time job, ask whether the hours are guaranteed or follow the orders.
What a production labourer does
- Move raw materials, components and finished products around the plant, by hand or with a pallet jack
- Feed the line or machine with materials, boxes and labels so it keeps running
- Help the machine operator or assembler: hand over parts, take product off the machine, set up the station
- Check and weigh materials and products, and set aside anything that does not meet spec
- Sort, pack, crate and label products, then build and wrap pallets
- Clean the station, work areas and equipment, following the lockout procedure whenever you enter a machine’s danger zone
- Remove scrap and sort recyclable materials at the end of a run
- Tell the operator or lead hand when material runs short, a product is damaged or a machine acts up
- Switch stations as needed: the same person may go from packing to feeding the line in a single week
Requirements, cards and certifications
- No diploma is set by the National Occupational Classification: some secondary school may be required
- Not a regulated occupation in Quebec: no licence or certificate of qualification, according to Job Bank
- WHMIS training (SIMDUT in Quebec) provided by the employer as soon as the job involves a hazardous product, adapted to the plant and its products
- Training on the plant’s lockout procedure before any cleaning, clearing or adjusting inside a machine’s danger zone
- To operate a powered pallet truck or a forklift: age 16, under section 256.2 of Quebec’s Regulation respecting occupational health and safety, and training under section 256.3
- Ability to stand, handle materials, repeat the same motions and bend for most of the shift
- Wearing basic safety equipment: Job Bank notes exposure to noise, hazardous chemicals and risk of skin injury
Training
No program leads straight to a production labourer job: you start without a diploma, and the employer provides the training that matters. According to the CNESST, Quebec’s workplace health and safety board, the employer must give WHMIS training to anyone exposed to a hazardous product and update the program every year or when a new product arrives; the CNESST accredits no WHMIS trainers, so a certificate from a past job does not replace plant-specific training. The employer must also train and inform anyone with access to a machine’s danger zone on the lockout method used. To go further, Inforoute FPT lists the DEP Opération d’équipements de production (5362), taught in English as Production Equipment Operation (5862): 870 hours, about 10 months; locally, it links the program to C.F.P. Anjou in Montreal, École Polymécanique de Laval and C.F.P. l’Émergence in the Laurentides; open groups change from year to year, so check them on Inforoute. Admission requires a high school diploma or, from age 16, Secondary III credits in language of instruction, second language and math. Recognition of prior learning is offered at several centres.
Career path
Statistics Canada says so in the NOC definition: experience leads to machine operator positions, and there is some mobility among jobs in the group, from packing to helping at the machine. The DEP in production equipment operation trains specifically for the operator trade, including equipment set-up and quality control. Further on, production supervision is a separate occupation, NOC 92024.
Frequently asked questions
What does a production labourer do?
A production labourer is a factory general hand: moving materials, feeding lines, helping machine operators, checking, sorting, packing and cleaning. No diploma is required. It is the entry door to manufacturing: you learn the line, the products and the plant’s safety rules, then you can aim for an operator job.
How much does a production labourer make in Montreal?
Job Bank does not publish an average: it gives a low, median and high wage, which the table above shows for Quebec and for each Greater Montreal region. The postings column adds what employers actually offer. The table covers NOC 95109; a plastics or food plant is measured under a different code.
What are the duties of a general labourer in a factory?
In a plant, they are the duties Statistics Canada lists for NOC 95109: move materials and products, check and weigh, sort, pack and crate, help operators and assemblers, and clean work areas and equipment. The mix changes from plant to plant; the posting should say which station on the line you will work.
Is a food production worker the same job?
The work is similar, but in a food or beverage plant. Statistics Canada classifies it as a different occupation, NOC 95106, “Labourers in food and beverage processing”. Its pay is therefore not in this page’s table: it has its own page, Food processing labourer.
What is the NOC code for a production labourer?
In Job Bank’s job title index, “production day labourer - manufacturing” is linked to NOC 95109. The same title changes code with the product: “tire industry” goes to 95104 and “trailers” to 95101. Before comparing pay or filling in an immigration form, check what the plant actually makes.
What is “journalier de production” in English?
Job Bank translates “journalier de production - fabrication” as “production day labourer - manufacturing”. Montreal postings more often say “production labourer”, “general labourer” or “factory worker”. The official group name is “Other labourers in processing, manufacturing and utilities”, NOC 95109; in French, “Autres manoeuvres des services de transformation, de fabrication et d’utilité publique”.
Can I get a factory job in Montreal with no experience or diploma?
Yes. The NOC sets no diploma; some secondary school may be requested. According to Job Bank, 35% of people in this group in Quebec have no high school diploma. The requirements Job Bank notes are mostly physical: standing, handling materials, repeating the same motions. WHMIS and lockout are then learned at the plant.
Are there night-shift and part-time production labourer jobs?
Yes, both. The “What the job postings say” block shows the share of Greater Montreal postings that mention nights, evenings or weekends. For part time, Job Bank reports that 15% of people in this group in Quebec work part time, against 85% full time, and that half work only part of the year.
What training does the employer have to provide?
Up to three, depending on the station. WHMIS as soon as hazardous products are present, which the CNESST places on the employer. The lockout method before anyone enters a machine’s danger zone. And, for a powered pallet truck or a forklift, the training in section 256.3 of Quebec’s Regulation respecting occupational health and safety, from age 16 under section 256.2.
What is the job outlook in Montreal and Laval?
Job Bank rates the outlook for NOC 95109 as “Very limited” in Quebec and in each of the five regions in the table, Montreal and Laval included. It points to an expected employment decline, retirements, and several experienced workers looking for work. Jobs still open up: the table gives the number of postings region by region.
Production labourer or material handler: what is the difference?
A production labourer works inside the manufacturing process: feeding the line, helping the operator, checking and packing what comes off it. A material handler moves, loads and stores goods, mostly in a warehouse. They are two separate occupations: NOC 95109 for the first, NOC 75101, “Material handlers”, for the second, each with its own page.
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