Customers should bear cost of wage hike
Re Small business owners are not the bullies here: Opinion, Jan. 7
Dan Kelly doesn’t get much sympathy from me.
His examples of businesses that are paying the price for the increase in the minimum wage are dry cleaners, coffee shops and mechanics. All these shops have to do to cover the increased expense is to raise their prices. Now, don’t try to tell me that this will make them uncompetitive. All their competitors are in the same situation and will have to raise their prices as well. The people that will actually bear the cost are the customers themselves and that is as it should be. It is a small burden to pay so that all employees can have at least a half-decent wage. The extra cost would be minimal as it is spread out among the general public, not the business owners.
Having said that, there are businesses that will suffer and I do feel sorry for them and they should be given some consideration. They are businesses such as retailers that compete with online business that don’t have the same employee expenses.
It’s also tough to compete with low wages from other countries, but that doesn’t give employers the right to keep wages low in Ontario. There are other ways to combat unfair labour practices abroad.
Sure there are problems to be resolved, but this outcry from a lot of business groups that the sky is falling is mostly just nonsense. Ken Fitzsimmons, Toronto Dan Kelly has the misguided and even arrogant attitude that any business creating jobs must be considered a successful business and be left alone by government despite poverty wages, denied tips and no job security for its workers.
Indeed, his arguments lead me to conclude that his membership has not the capability to create vibrant, living-wage jobs.
As well, he appears to be insistent that workers in this province should be thankful for any position no matter the wage, treatment or security.
By contrast, jurisdictions throughout the western world have thriving small businesses that pay living wages (not just a sham attempt at such).
He and his membership need to learn how to be successful without exploiting workers. Tom Doris, Toronto