Base wages are used as the starting point in the calculation of employer contributions. The definition of “base wages” has been amended to include any amount paid, allocated, granted or awarded to an employee by a person with whom the employer is not dealing at arm's length that would have been included in the base wages had these been paid, allocated, granted or awarded by the employer.

For example, an employer is required to include in an employee's salary or wages, the value of a benefit related to a security option that the employee receives from a foreign corporation with whom the employer is not dealing at arm's length.