A few dozen people gathered on the steps of the Manitoba legislature to call for a $15 minimum wage.
“We’re gathering to call on the government to do what’s right and what’s reasonable, to make it so that people who work full time don’t have to live in poverty,” Kevin Rebeck, president of the Manitoba Federation of Labour, told CTV News.
Manitoba’s minimum wage is currently $11, and will rise to $11.15 on October 1.
Rebeck says a minimum wage of $15 would allow full time workers to reach the low-income cutoff and afford basic needs.
“Can you imagine right now, not being able to make ends meet? Have to make choices between paying your rent, or groceries, much less trying to put some money aside for savings to better yourself, to be able to go to school, to be able to upgrade.”
In the spring, the province passed legislation to tie annual minimum wage increases to inflation via the Consumer Price Index, an approach similar to some other provinces such as New Brunswick.
In Alberta, the minimum wage is scheduled to be raised to $15 on Oct. 1, 2018.
