Victoria hinting at minimum wage hike
Posted September 29, 2010 9:45 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – After years of debate, B.C.’s Labour Minister is hinting at raising the minimum wage.
Murray Coell made the comments at a meeting in Whistler just ahead of the Union of B.C. Municipalities Conference starting Thursday.
B.C. Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair says after years of not listening to local governments or to the people of B.C., Victoria is finally moving ahead on the issue, and it’s a “shocking” event.
“The Labour Minister has said what 80 per cent of British Columbians believe, [that] it’s well past the time to raise the minimum wage. What I haven’t heard – the second part of that, which British Columbians want – is to go to at least $10, so we’re not still a disgrace in the rest of Canada.”
Right now, our mimimum wage is $8 per hour, while the entry level starting wage is just $6 per hour – the lowest in the country. At $10.25 per hour, Ontario has Canada’s highest minimum wage.
Labour Minister Murray Coell was not available for comment.
