QUEEN’S PARK—Ontario’s low-wage workers received a welcome boost on Tuesday, October 1 as the province’s legislated minimum wage rose from $16.55 per hour to $17.20 per hour, a 3.9 percent increase.
The 65 cent increase is based on the consumer price index and will result in people working 40 hours a week getting up to $1,355 more in the coming year—those working 35 hours a week will receive up to $1,183.
Statistics Canada reports that last year, there were 935,000 wage-earners across Ontario making $17.20 an hour or less. About 35 percent of the workers in that category were employed in retail trade, while 24 percent are in accommodation and food services.
Across the nation, approximately 1.565 million workers earned minimum wage (10.1 percent of employees). Almost 50 percent of workers in 2018 were between the ages of 15 and 24 (students and non-students) and almost 22 percent were aged 35 to 54, while 9.6 percent were between the ages of 55 to 64.
While now offering the second highest minimum wage in Canada (the highest, at $17.40, is in British Columbia), the increase in Ontario will still fall well below what the Ontario Living Wage Network (OLWN) defines as “livable” in this province—by a full $7.85 if you live in the Greater Toronto Area. The OLWN makes its calculations based on the costs of shelter, food and transportation. Manitoulin can’t get too smug as the current minimum wage falls below what is necessary in every region of the country. The lowest cost being in southwestern Ontario ($18.65) and the highest being in the GTA.
Small wonder food banks such as that operated by Manitoulin Family Resources are reporting rapid rises in access by the “working poor.”
The minimum wage was last substantially raised under the Ontario Liberal government of Kathleen Wynne, which jumped the amount in 2018 to $14 (from $11.60) with a promise to raise it to $15 in 2019 and then followed by rises dictated by the CPI. The incoming Ford government quashed that rise for another three years until 2022, when it was increased to $15 and tied to the CPI.
“The fact that it’s going up is good,” said Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles. “But we need to adjust the base to reflect reality and then tie it to inflation. Right now, the base is far too low for where people are at right now.”
“In Doug Ford’s Ontario, people are struggling, wages are down, costs are higher, and Ford is focused on helping his friends,” said Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie in a release responding to the news. She asserts that the government should be doing more to keep the cost of living down.
For its part, the province claims it is doing all it can. A government spokesperson said, “We understand that costs vary across different regions and we remain committed to supporting workers across the province.”
