$10 wage eventually, McGuinty says<\/p>\n
Feb 01, 2007 05:50 PM
\nCanadian Press\/BURLINGTON \u2013 Ontario’s minimum wage will eventually reach $10 an hour, but the government won’t bow to pressure from critics and make it happen overnight, Premier Dalton McGuinty said today.<\/p>\n
Speaking to the media for the first time since returning from a trade mission to India, McGuinty said today’s 25-cent bump in the minimum wage to $8 an hour fulfils an election promise, and the government will now begin planning for future increases.<\/p>\n
“We made a commitment to take it from $6.75 to $8 an hour over the first three years or so of our mandate \u2013 we’ve done that,” McGuinty said.<\/p>\n
“The issue on a go-forward basis is not whether we get to $10 an hour, the issue is what’s the best way to get there, and can we do so in a way that strikes a balance between our low-income workers and the economy so we’re not compromising jobs.”<\/p>\n
McGuinty said the new increase brings Ontario in line with the highest-paying provinces in Canada \u2013 although Nunavut’s minimum wage is $8.50 an hour and it’s $8.25 in the Northwest Territories and Yukon \u2013 and the government will ensure it stays at a fair level.<\/p>\n
The opposition parties and advocacy groups have called for an immediate increase in the minimum wage to at least $10 an hour, but McGuinty said the next hike will not be $2 an hour since the government has never believed in implementing such large one-time increases.<\/p>\n
“If you want to take a look at where we’re going in the future … take a look at the past: steady, gradual increases that act to the benefit of employers and employees,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Some people say we should accelerate the minimum wage and get it to $10 overnight. Other people are saying, `You should absolutely not do that \u2013 you should maintain it at $8 an hour for a couple years at least, because you just raised it by 17 per cent.’ We think that the best path for Ontario probably lies somewhere in between.”<\/p>\n
But Ontario’s new minimum wage is still far below what people can reasonably be expected to live on, said Hugh Mackenzie of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.<\/p>\n
“This is a society that places an enormous value on work and … if somebody plays by the rules \u2013 you work full-time \u2013 you should be able to keep your family out of poverty,” said Mackenzie, who authored a report on minimum wage. “I think most Canadians would agree.”<\/p>\n
Mackenzie said he doesn’t believe a higher minimum wage would result in job losses since most low-wage workers are employed in service industries that couldn’t afford to lay off workers and would more likely just raise prices to compete.<\/p>\n
All businesses in an industry would be affected by the same increase in payroll, so it wouldn’t create a competitive disadvantage for anyone, he said.<\/p>\n
There are an estimated 200,000 Ontario workers earning minimum wage, while 1.2 million make less than $10 an hour.<\/p>\n
The lowest minimum wage in Canada is $7 an hour, found in Alberta, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
$10 wage eventually, McGuinty says Feb 01, 2007 05:50 PM Canadian Press\/BURLINGTON \u2013 Ontario’s minimum wage will eventually reach $10 an hour, b…
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