Is it possible to get by in Vancouver — one of the most expensive cities in Canada — on B.C.’s new minimum wage?
As of June 1, the province’s minimum wage has gone from $16.75 to $17.40 per hour, while Metro Vancouver’s living wage is over $25 per hour.
Anastasia French, the provincial manager with Living Wage for Families BC, says the provincial government should increase minimum wage to at least $20 an hour.
“Housing costs and food costs, which are the two biggest expenses we need to get by, have skyrocketed,” French said.
“That means the increases to the minimum wage are really small, insubstantial to how much it’s costing to get by right now.”
French says the $8 gap between minimum wage and the living wage is hurting a lot of families.
“What do they cut back on? Do they pay for gas today, do they pay for groceries today? And often they have to then work additional jobs just to make ends meet on top of their full-time jobs,” she said. “That’s time that they’re not spending with their families.”
In a statement, the B.C. Ministry of Labour says it has tied minimum wage to general inflation and will do so in the future.
“This was an important step to ensure that B.C.’s lowest paid workers are protected, and both workers and employers can count on predictable future increases,” the statement said.
French would like companies to step up and become living wage employers.
“It leads to a happier workforce, a workforce that’s more productive,” she said.
French says that until government takes action, the gap between the living wage and minimum wage will keep growing.
“And we need to close that gap.”