This week is Living Wage Week in Canada. Many people in the Northwest Territories don’t earn enough at their jobs to pull themselves and their families above the poverty line. The concept of a living wage is based on the understanding that a person working full time should be able to support themselves in their community.
This movement is gaining traction in many places throughout the world. It addresses income inequality, one of the biggest obstacles to economies everywhere. Paying employees a living wage can change that for millions of Canadians. In fact, employers in about 30 cities are set to do just that.
A living wage sets an evidence-based standard that calculates the cost of living in a community based on a basket of goods and services. In contrast,
minimum wage legislation does not come close to meeting these costs for individuals or families.
A recent study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives in all 10 provinces between 1983 and 2012 found that raising the minimum wage does not affect job numbers. A living wage can make a world of difference in health outcomes and quality of life, but the living wage amount varies from community to community due to differences in costs of living and government transfers as it is based on local costs for things like food, housing, transportation and child care.
A living wage is by no means extravagant. For instance, calculations do not include the cost of homeownership, debt repayment or savings. New Westminster, BC, became the first municipality in Canada to officially become a living wage employer in 2010. Since then, dozens of Canadian communities have become actively engaged in living wage discussions supported by national organizations such as Vibrant Communities Canada and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
In Yellowknife, Alternatives North, with the support of Anti-Poverty Strategy dollars, are engaged in exploring what a living wage would look like in the NWT’s capital city.
The living wage movement is fairly recent to Canada, but where living wage policies have been implemented in the United States and the United Kingdom, employers and communities have realized significant benefits.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement. Mahsi.
---Unanimous consent granted