(Quebec) The hourly rate for minimum-wage workers will increase by $1 to $15.25 an hour effective May 1. This increase is “responsible and balanced,” defended Labor Secretary Jean Boulet, while groups urged the government to raise it to $18 an hour.
Posted 3:32pm Updated 4:44pm
At a press conference in Quebec, Mr Boulet said that raising the minimum wage more would have hurt the economy, harmed SMEs or caused layoffs. Given the announced surge, small businesses are still begging the Legault government to help them by including them in its “anti-inflation shield.”
“I consider two criteria to be paramount: increasing purchasing power and respecting the solvency of companies,” said the minister.
“Our minimum wage must be respectful and compatible with our economic situation. […] We want to make sure the minimum wage is 50% of the average hourly wage,” he added.
Wages for tipped workers will increase by 80 cents to $12.20 an hour.
With a universal minimum wage of $15.25 an hour effective May 1, Quebec will have the third highest wage in Canada, behind British Columbia ($15.65) and Ontario ($15.50).
The hike announced on Wednesday is “the most significant increase in the current dollar that Quebec has seen,” recalled Jean Boulet.
“This corresponds to an increase of 7.02%. This is the highest percentage increase since 1995”, welcomed the minister, reminding that 298,900 workers will benefit.
An insufficient increase
According to the Collective for a Quebec City Without Poverty, this increase in the minimum wage in Quebec is not enough to lift low-income earners out of poverty.
“Seven years ago we charged $15 an hour. We stand behind reality, and reality says that people cannot meet their basic needs, ”reacted Wednesday Virginie Larivière, spokeswoman for the collective.
“When citizens are forced to go to the Tafel but have a job, there is a problem. The problem is even more glaring with current inflation,” she added.
“Explosive” costs for SMEs
Quebec Vice President of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), François Vincent, underscored the “pragmatic” nature of the increase unveiled by Quebec on Wednesday, but warned that it still hurts small businesses that don’t already have more leeway becomes the current inflationary environment.
“Quebec SMEs are seeing their costs skyrocket everywhere and they are not locked into the anti-inflation shield. There is a limit to what the small business can increase its prices. The more it increases its prices, the more it pushes customers to downsize their consumer spending or to opt for big American chains,” he said.
Mr Vincent regrets that the government has not announced any measures to help SMEs deal with inflation and the renewed increase in the minimum wage, while companies have still not recovered from the effects of the pandemic.