Hiking minimum wage a good idea

Re: Ontario to raise minimum wage, ensure equal pay for part-time workers, by Chris Thompson, May 30.

After almost three years, the Workplace Review panel submitted its final report to the Ontario government. The panel reviewed the Employment Standards Act and the Ontario Labour Relations Act and heard from many workers and worker advocates, including in Windsor when the panel was here in 2015.

For many, the main news is the proposed hike in the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2019. This is welcome news, especially since we were told wages were not on the radar of the panel because the government already addressed wages (inadequately) in a previous round of consultations.

The business community is working overtime trying to convince people a $15 minimum wage will spell disaster.

Here’s just a sample of why a decent wage is a good idea for everyone: Estimates I’ve seen show $5 billion would go to workers, which generates more local economic activity; and the new wage rate would benefit 1.5 million, 60 per cent of whom are under 25.

The real story here is workers have prodded the government to make improvements. For non-union workers, scheduling, vacation time and sick days will be improved — not enough, but something to build on.

The economy is usually portrayed as the exclusive turf of business elites, yet the truth is it is a symbiotic relationship that requires the constant circulation of wealth. The real problem is the hoarding of wealth by elites and the failure to reinvest in ways that create work for people. Paul Chislett, Windsor Workers’ Education Centre