The Saskatchewan Party government is announcing an increase to the provincial minimum wage.
October 1st of this year will see $1.19 put into the pockets of the province’s lowest earners – not even enough to buy an extra small black coffee from the local shop. The wage will increase to $13.00 an hour on October 1st of 2023, and 15 dollars an hour in 2024..
The move was called “substantial” by Premier Scott Moe during the scrum following yesterday’s question period at provincial legislature. The increase will still see the province near the bottom of province’s across Canada – with only Manitoba behind us.
The Regina Anti Poverty Ministry’s Peter Gilmer told 620 CKRM Source news that the increase does not come close to what is needed.
“When it comes to working poor households, we are routinely having to advocate for issues that relate to housing and inability to access affordable housing and pay rent and arrears. These are issues we deal with frequently, and a significant part of any serious anti-poverty strategy is to provide an actual living wage for lower income people.”
Gilmer says the increase is short sighted, “Given that we have seen such a significant rise in inflation over the last few months. We should have seen this movement sooner rather than later. It’s too little. We need to see a much more serious commitment to making sure that low income working households can meet their most basic needs. We won’t see that with this increase alone.”
A study published in 2016 by the Canadian Center for Policy alternatives suggested that a wage necessary for residents living in the city of Regina was $16.46 per hour. The study sighted a booming economy and many unserved sectors as the force behind the increase. That wage it was said – would help extend income security not only to workers but also to their families, improving health, and child development outcomes. That study was published in 2016, since then the dollar has seen an inflation rate of 3.06% per year between 2016 and today. This amounts to a cumulative increase of close to 20%. . This means that today’s prices are 1.20 times higher than average prices since 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index.
Adjusted for inflation – this places the living wage for Saskatchewan’s capital at $19.75. Meaning the Saskatchewan Party has missed the mark by $6.75 – and that we won’t see the potential of what will then be an obsolete number until at least 2029.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business is surprised by the move, saying the provincial government didn’t consult with anyone before making the announcement.
“This makes me think, there wasn’t a lot of though given to this” says Saskatchewan Director for the CFIB Katherine Cook.
She says businesses are already dealing sky rocketing costs because of inflation. In Saskatchewan businesses are dealing with more services falling under the PST, and there is a potential increase to SaskPower rates as well.
We’ll have more reaction to this, in the hours to come.
