Committee Recommends Raising Minimum Wage

In its latest report, the Minimum Wage Review Committee has recommended raising the rate to $10 an hour on Oct. 1 from $9.65 per hour.

The province posted the report today, March 10, to allow comment from the public, business community and other interested groups on the latest recommendations.

Submissions must be received by April 11. After considering the comments, government will respond to the report and its recommendations.

"The minimum wage is an important economic benchmark that affects both people and the business community," said Marilyn More, Minister of Labour and Advanced Education. "I encourage anyone who is interested to please read the committee's report and provide comments. I look forward to carefully reviewing this feedback, along with the findings of the report, before considering any future changes to the minimum wage."

For more information and a copy of the report visit www.gov.ns.ca/lae or call 1-888-315-0110.

The report also recommends:

• increasing the minimum wage for inexperienced workers,(less than three months experience) to $9.50 on Oct 1;
• beginning in 2012, the minimum wage be adjusted annually on April 1, and tied to the consumer price index of the previous year; and
• the committee continue to meet annually to carry out re-indexing and assess whether any changes are required.

In January 2008, the four-person committee, made up of employer and employee representatives, recommended a series of minimum wage increases. The last increases occurred in October 2010 and brought a full-time employee earning minimum wage within reach of the projected low-income cut off for a single person.

The low-income cut off represents the threshold where people are devoting a larger than average percentage of their income to the necessities of food, shelter, and clothing.