This week, minimum wage workers in British Columbia are set to get a raise, as the hourly rate goes up from $11.35/hour to $12.65/hour on Friday, June 1st.
The boost was first announced in February and is a part of the NDP government’s plan of slowly increasing the minimum wage rate every year on June 1st until it reaches $15/hour.
Friday’s wage boost will be the largest minimum wage increase in recent BC history. It is set to go up to $13.85 per hour (+$1.20) in 2019, $14.60 per hour (+$0.75) in 2020, and $15.20 per hour (+$0.60) in 2021.
Not everyone is happy with the increase
As June 1st approaches, more and more critiques of the NDP’s efforts to raise minimum wage rates are coming to light.
The Fraser Institute recently released a study arguing that raising the rate will not actually help people living in poverty because as of 2015, 84% of minimum wage workers in BC did not live in low-income families.
The report also cites “fewer job opportunities, decreases in hours available for work, reductions in non-wage benefits, a shift towards automation, and higher consumer prices,” as consequences of raising the minimum wage that will hurt the working poor.
On the flip side, a recent report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says that a family living in Metro Vancouver needs two adults working for a minimum of $20.91/hour to support themselves and two children and pay for their basic needs.
