Both the NDP and the Liberals are promising to increase the minimum wage in Manitoba to $15/hour.
While the idea is something that is talked about nationwide, there always seems to be pushback on actually raising the current minimum wage.
The minimum wage in Manitoba is set to increase to $11.65/hour on October 1st, but what would an increase to $15/hour actually look like?
Fletcher Baragar, an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Manitoba, says there wouldn’t actually be significant negative effects on employment if the wage hike was implemented.
“Any negative employment effects seem to be fairly specific to a particular market, and seem to be rather mild or modest,” said Baragar. “That used to be the big argument against raising minimum wages or even having minimum wages was that it was a job killer, and the evidence there doesn’t really seem to very strong”
Baragar adds that if the minimum wage is increased, it should be done slowly to allow the people in the market who would be affected by the increase, to have some time to make necessary adjustments.
The professor also says that raising the minimum wage to $15/hour won’t really help minimum wage workers get above the poverty line.
“This isn’t a single solution, but it is part of a broader solution. So it’s a step in the right direction, it's not gonna solve the problems, but it does help to ameliorate some, and it will make a real difference for some workers, for sure.”
The only province that has a $15/hour minimum wage is Alberta. B.C. plans to raise theirs to at least $15.20/hour in 2021.
