The change will be effective Jan. 1, 2022, but some local businesses and poverty reduction advocates are unhappy with the timing and amount
Premier Doug Ford announced that the Ontario government will increase the minimum wage to a $15 hourly rate, effective Jan. 1, 2022.
“I can’t think of a better way for our government to be working for workers than ensuring hundreds of thousands of people take more pay home,” Ford said during an announcement on Nov. 2.
Currently, the minimum hourly rate is $14.35. It went up 10 cents from $14.25 on Oct. 1.
According to Ford, the minimum wage will continue to increase every October in response to inflation rates.
“Ontario’s workers have been the unsung heroes of this pandemic, as they’ve stocked shelves, kept our supply chain moving and helped so many of us enjoy a meal among family and friends at a local restaurant,” said Ford in a news release.
Homeworkers, students under the age of 18, hunting and fishing guides, and liquor servers will also see various pay increases in the new year.
Liquor servers have historically received a lower rate than the minimum wage due to the belief that customer tips fill the margin. Come January they will receive $15 an hour, a 19.5% raise up from $12.55.
“We recognize that for too long workers have been falling behind, and that wages for many have not kept up with the cost of living. They had Ontario’s back, and now, our government has theirs. Ontario workers should be in a race to the top, not a race to the bottom,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, Ontario’s minister of finance.
Guelph Chamber of Commerce President Shakiba Shayani told Guelph Today that she supports the minimum wage increase, but that it doesn’t leave businesses much time to make the necessary changes.
Noting that the Premier’s announcement came unexpectedly, Shayani says that two months is not enough time for businesses to prepare changes to their budgets. Furthermore, these stresses are especially a challenge for businesses based in the retail and hospitality sector as the holiday season quickly approaches.
In order to counteract the increase in minimum wage, businesses will need to cut expenses, leading to job loss or increased costs for the consumer, Shayani said.
Meanwhile, poverty reduction advocates suggest that the wage increase is not enough.
New data has shown that the living wage in the Guelph-Wellington Region is $18.10 an hour, while Peel Region is $19.80, Hamilton is $17.20, and Toronto is $22.08.
Director of Guelph-Wellington Task Force for Poverty Elimination, Dominica McPherson, said that an increase in minimum wage is a move in the right direction, but a $15 hourly rate is still not enough.
“Unfortunately, the minimum wage continues to keep people in desperate situations where they have to make decisions between paying for electricity or buying food,” McPherson told Guelph Today. “These are impossible choices no one should have to experience.”
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