B.C. plans wage hike

PREMIER SAYS MINIMUM WAGE HIKE TO $15.20 BY 2021 WILL KEEP B.C. COMPETITIVE

British Columbia will gradually hike its minimum hourly wage to get to $15.20 by June 2021. It’s a decision criticized by both labour and business groups. “We believe that 2021 is not overly aggressive, in fact it’s going to be a disappointment to some,” Premier John Horgan said Thursday at a coffee shop in North Vancouver.

The timeline is aimed at finding a balance between allowing businesses to predict their needs and giving hope to about 400,000 of the lowest-paid workers in the province, he said.

“If we’re going to be competitive, if we’re going to be able to recruit and retain workers in sectors like hospitality and others that pay, on balance, lower wages we need to make sure that we are competitive with other jurisdictions,” Horgan said.

The wage is currently $11.35 and will rise every June until 2021.

B.C. is making other changes to help businesses such as eliminating the provincial sales tax on electricity by 2019, Horgan said.

The government appointed a commission last October to deal with the business sector and establish the timing of the minimum wage increase, which will go up by $1.30 this year, $1.20 in 2019 and jump by less than a dollar in the following two years.

The three experts who led the Fair Wages Commission recommended predictable and regular hikes and said the hourly wage rate could be raised to $15.40 an hour by 2021, depending on economic conditions.

“We believe that we have strong economic growth in British Columbia and the commission’s rationale for front-end loading the increases was because we have a robust economy in British Columbia and the expectation is that’s going to continue for the next two years,” Horgan said.

Surrey Board of Trade CEO Anita Huberman said the wage hikes over three years are too quick and she had asked the commission for a five-year implementation.