In response to April 28, 2011 Calgary Herald Editorial

Minister of Employment Thomas Lukaszuk recently discussed his idea to link Alberta’s minimum wage to those of British Columbia and Saskatchewan.  While this idea marks a recognition of the need for inter-provincial economic coordination, it is also important to recognize that a minimum wage, which is lowest in Alberta, does not meet even the basic costs of living in our three provinces. 

A person working full time (35 hours/week) making minimum wage would earn about $16,000/year.  Obviously, this would place an individual in dire economic straits on an on-going basis, and seriously hamper his or her ability to participate authentically in social life. The unofficial poverty line for an individual in Calgary or Edmonton is just over $22,000/year.

Rather than talking about a minimum wage, the Living Wage Action Team encourages discussion around a Living Wage, which helps people meet their basic needs, maintain a safe, decent standard of living, and save for future needs and goals.  Currently, we advocate for the Living Wage to be $12.25 plus benefits, or $13.50/hour without benefit, anything less is poverty.

There are more than 90,000 Calgarians who make less than a Living Wage and nearly 300,000 Albertans who earn less than a Living Wage. Contrary to popular belief, the majority of these people are not students or teenagers, more than half are over the age of 25, and more than 60% are women.

At its root, the Living Wage promotes dignity and inclusion for the individual, and helps our communities and our local economies thrive – we all win with a Living Wage.  We appreciate Minister Lukaszuk’s discussions on equal inter-provincial standards.   We believe Alberta wages should not continue to lag behind all other provinces.  We hope to see a Living Wage featured prominently in Minister Lukaszuk’s review.

The Living Wage Action Team