Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry left hoping for more after minimum wage change

The Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry says Saskatchewan’s announcement of a minimum wage increase is a positive sign, but is still not enough.

On Tuesday, the province said it would increase the minimum wage for workers to $15 per hour over the next 2 1/2 years.

Starting on Oct. 1, those making minimum wage will see an increase from $11.81 per hour to $13 per hour. On Oct. 1, 2023, it will increase to $14 per hour and will go to $15 per hour on Oct. 1, 2024.

The ministry’s Peter Gilmer says he was hoping to see more from the province.

“On the one hand, it’s good to see some movement in the right direction. We’ve been sitting at being the lowest minimum wage in the country for some time now, so it’s good to see some improvement on that front,” Gilmer said.

“It’s still certainly a long ways from where it needs to be. Our view of what’s really needed would be an immediate move to the $15 minimum wage and then an incremental plan to get it up to an actual living wage.”

Gilmer feels there is still a lot of work for the province to do to make sure minimum wage workers are actually able to afford basics.

“An increase was long overdue, but given the length of time that we’ve gone (without a raise) and how far we’ve fallen behind, we think that increase should be even more aggressive and we should be looking for that immediate jump up to the $15 per hour with a the plan to have it moved to an actual living wage,” he said.

Gilmer adds while this move is a step in the right direction, it doesn’t really put much more money into the pockets of workers making the bare minimum.

“This is just making up for that inflationary growth,” Gilmer said.

Businesses will have mixed reactions about the announcement, but Gilmer thinks it will have a positive effect on them.

“It’s also good for local businesses because low-wage workers spend all of their disposable income in local economies and that creates demand in our economy and that’s good for business. There’s real positive economic indicators that grow out of having significant increases in minimum wage,” Gilmer explained.

“It’s a first step, but more needs to be done.”