Minimum wage in Ontario to go to $8.75 per hour

Typical negative reaction from business which is understandable given that economic conditions are already not that great for many businesses. Yet the minimum wage raise is hardly as large as the legislator's wage increase of 25 per cent in 2006! Strange that when there is so much concern about an economic decline that no one notes that the increased wages will stimulate the economy because it is likely to be spent rather than saved.

Minimum Wage Rises To $8.75/Hr, While MPPs Get Salary Hike Of Their Own
Monday March 31, 2008
CityNews.ca Staff
Ontario workers in minimum wage jobs will see more money in their pockets starting Monday.

That's when their hourly rate jumps from $8 to $8.75, one of a series of planned hikes for the province's lowest paid employees. The next 75-cent increase happens a year from now, and the following on the same date in 2010, eventually bringing minimum wage to $10.25 per hour.

"We've done it in a way that is aggressive but gradual to allow businesses to adjust, so that we don't hurt the very people that we're trying to help," Labour Minister Brad Duguid said, adding that the increase means Ontario minimum wage earners are the highest paid in the country.

However business leaders suggest now's not a good time to be increasing minimum wage, given the dark economic outlook. Satinder Chera, Ontario director of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, says increasing wages forces some business owners to reduce benefits or hire fewer people.

"No one begrudges giving those that are struggling to make ends meet a way forward," Chera said. "But we've always said to the government that there are other options."

Progressive Conservative Bob Bailey agrees, contending economic conditions should be considered before such a decision is made, saying, "Anybody that's in business and having a problem already - this could be just enough to make layoffs."

Labour groups on the other hand contend the current minimum wage, at $8.75, is still too low for most to make a living on and that many have to juggle several jobs to make ends meet.

Meanwhile, provincial politicians will also see more in their bank accounts come next paycheque. The base salary for an MPP is set to increase to a little higher than $116,000 annually, up from $113,000. That's an increase of just more than three per cent. That jump follows a 25 per cent hike in December of 2006 and comes out to 35 per cent higher earnings over the past two years.