Critics unhappy with minimum wage timeline as Horgan re-commits to $15/hr

NORTH VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The NDP government is hiking BC’s minimum wage.

Premier John Horgan has announced the wage will rise to $15.20 an hour by 2021, fulfilling a pledge made during last year’s election campaign.

In the near-term, it will go up a $1.30 to $12.65 per hour as of June 1, 2018.

“[There will be] another increase the following June and a further increase the June after that, until we realize $15.20 in June of 2021,” says Horgan.

He says right now, 400,000 workers in BC are paid less than $15 per hour.

“It’s long overdue that British Columbia workers be on the same pay scale as workers in other provinces like Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec.”

“They shouldn’t have to rely on food banks. They shouldn’t have to rely on two or three jobs. They should be able to find a place where they can make an honest living, feed their families, and realize their full potential,” adds Horgan.

BC Green Leader Andrew Weaver supports a raise to the minimum wage.

“We proposed the Fair Wages Commission with the goal of depoliticizing the process of setting minimum wage in BC,” Weaver says in a statement.

“I am glad that a key recommendation of the report is to establish a permanent commission to keep politics out of minimum wage discussions, and I strongly urge the government to commit to this recommendation. This commission should be empowered with the explicit mandate of analyzing the impacts of minimum wage increases and recommending changes going forward based on evidence,” adds Weaver.

BC’s minimum wage currently sits at $11.35 an hour, following a 50-cent hike last September.

BC Federation of Labour disappointed in three-year wait to reach $15 per hour

The BC Federation of Labour is praising the announcement of a $15 minimum wage in BC’s future, but is disappointed that it’ll take another three years to get there.

“Let’s be clear that achieving a $15 per hour minimum wage is an accomplishment, and better than anything the previous BC Liberal government would have done to address poverty wages and inequality,” says BC Federation of Labour President Irene Lanzinger in a statement.

“But making 500,000 low paid workers who currently make less than $15 wait until June 1, 2021 to climb above poverty wage rates is not fair.”

She points out other provinces, such as Ontario and Alberta, will reach $15 per hour earlier than BC will.

“Poverty and inequality are rampant in our province while BC is Canada’s most expensive place to live,” says Lanzinger.

The BC Federation of Labour claims 80 per cent of British Columbians who make less than $15 per hour are adults and one in seven holds a post-secondary degree.

Not everyone happy with minimum wage bump

Some local stakeholders say the wage hike being touted by the BC NDP is happening too fast.

Richard Truscott with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business calls the move unfortunate. “Politicians continue to promote the advantages and the benefits of this when really on the ground the reality for small businesses is a lot different. This is going to put a lot of small businesses in a big squeeze with such a massive increase in their operating costs over such a short period of time.”

He feels that could mean a long list of impacts on small businesses. “Entrepreneurs will be looking across their business to try and find savings to pay for those much higher mandated wage costs.”

A move like that could mean cutting hours for certain workers, cutting budgets or other drastic measures.

“This series of increases is much too aggressive and a lot of it is all front-loaded, so it is going to be difficult for small business, so why not have a longer transition or phase in period for smaller firms? That totally makes sense. And let’s not forget these minimum wage hikes are coming at a time when small businesses are getting hit from all sides by government,” he adds, citing comprehensive tax reforms, increases to pension and EI, carbon tax, high property taxes and more.

Anita Huberman with the Surrey Board of Trade is just as concerned about the impacts of raising wages. “Businesses are going to have to take a look at their expenses as it relates to their labour in terms of their overall ability to deliver their service or make their product.”