Living wage

Council hears presentation on becoming a living wage region

At Thursday’s Committee of the Whole meeting, Anne Coleman of the Ontario Living Wage Network explained the benefits of the County becoming a certified living wage employer. The provincial employer program launched in 2017, and there are over 375 organizations across the province that are taking part. Coleman said that paying a living wage is good for employees, and also for the local economy. “When somebody has been earning minimum wage or a low wage and they begin to earn a living wage, they are less stressed; they have improved health and wellbeing. The extra income goes right back into the local economy,” she added.

In 2019, the living wage for the County was calculated at $17.35 an hour. The living wage for 2021 would likely be a touch higher. The network typically updates the calculation each year, but suspended 2020 calculations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The calculation takes into consideration many day-to day-items in the specific region, such as food, housing, transportation, child care and after-school activities. Income through taxes and government tax credits such as the child tax benefit are also considered before the wage is calculated. “The goal of the Ontario Living Wage Network is to raise wages in the province and to address poverty through paid work,” said Coleman.

A living wage is not the same as the minimum wage, which is the legislated minimum all employers must pay and is set by the provincial government. The living wage reflects what people need to earn to cover the actual costs of living in their community. The living wage draws on community- specific data to determine the expenses to a family with two working adults and two children. Living wage employers voluntarily decide to pay a living wage and maintain their certification as new rates are calculated for their area each November.

Many residents of the County are facing impossible choices—buy food or heat the house, feed the children or pay the rent. The result can be spiralling debt, constant anxiety, and long-term health problems. In many cases it means that the adults in a family are working long hours, often at two or three jobs, just to pay for basic necessities.

Councillor Janice Maynard asked how the living wage in Hastings Prince Edward compared to other areas of the province. Coleman explained that the highest living wage calculation in the province is in Toronto at $22.08, and the lowest is in Windsor at $16.50. “We tend to find that communities that are cities, but aren’t metropolitan areas, tend to be somewhere between $16.50 and $17.50, and rural areas tend to be $17 to $18.50. The rural aspect of the community is taken into account and that is what is putting it into that $17.35 range,” said Coleman.

Councillor Bill Roberts was in support of the program, and put forth a motion for council to consider joining the network at a November meeting, prior to budget discussions.

The motion carried. Roberts told his colleagues that 30 per cent of single parents in the County live in poverty. “That is a serious number. Fifteen per cent of our County households are low income, working poor and living in poverty. That is according to the Vital Signs 2018 report,” said Roberts. He also explained that research shows poverty costs all Canadian taxpayers somewhere between $72 billion and $86 billion per year in terms of healthcare, food insecurity, shelter, police services and social supports. “I’m hopeful that this motion does exactly what Anne was talking about in bringing awareness to the community and to businesses in the community. That we as a municipality have an ongoing political awareness of the issue of poverty and working poor and the need for a decent, living wage.”