The minimum wage in Manitoba is increasing to $15.30 this October; however, one group is saying it still comes up short.
On Wednesday, the Manitoba government announced that it would be increasing the minimum wage twice in 2023. This includes a 65-cent increase on April 1, 2023, to $14.15 and then a further $1.15 increase on Oct. 1, 2023, to $15.30.
The province notes these increases will put Manitoba in the top three of provincial minimum wages.
In recognition of current financial challenges, Labour and Immigration Minister Jon Reyes said the government passed legislative amendments to the Employment Standards Code that allows the minimum wage to be increased above the legislated inflation-tied formula.
“To balance the financial realities of Manitoba workers and the economic challenges for small businesses, we implemented a phased-in approach that will help more Manitobans get ahead,” he said in a news release.
Despite this increase means Manitoba will have one of the highest minimum wages of any province, the Manitoba Federation of Labour (MFL) is concerned that it still isn’t enough.
In a statement, MFL president Kevin Rebeck said a minimum wage of $15.30 still falls $3 short of a living wage, which is the wage workers need to be able to meet their basic needs.
Rebeck said that the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives – Manitoba has calculated that the living wage in Winnipeg is $18.34.
“That means that even after the minimum wage increases to $15.30 in October, there will be people who work full-time but still live in poverty in Manitoba,” he said.
Rebeck noted that the government’s formula for minimum wage increases was put in place in 2016 and began with a base rate of $11. Although minimum wage has been indexed to inflation since 2016, Rebeck said it remains below the poverty line and won’t rise above it unless it is “significantly rebased.”
“The Stefanson government’s funding formula keeps people in poverty, and will never lift them out,” he said.
“It is an insult to basic human dignity to have Manitobans working full-time and still living in poverty.”
Reyes said the inflation-tied formula ensures Manitoba’s minimum wage is linked to economic indicators.
Wednesday’s minimum wage announcement comes after Manitoba increased the minimum wage to $13.50 on Oct. 1, 2022.
More information on Manitoba’s minimum wage can be found online.
Canada's special rapporteur on foreign interference David Johnston is being questioned by MPs at committee about his role, his report into election meddling, his decision against a public inquiry, and allegations of a conflict of interest.
The number of interactions between killer whales and humans has increased alarmingly in recent years. CTVNews.ca asked an expert to explain the reasons behind the increase in interactions, explore the types of encounters, and examine the implications for both humans and killer whales.
An internal document suggests Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wants China kept out of a Pacific Rim trade bloc, despite the Liberals publicly insisting it would welcome anyone who meets the trade deal's standards.
Prince Harry entered a courtroom witness box Tuesday, swearing to tell the truth in testimony against a tabloid publisher he accuses of phone hacking and other unlawful snooping.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
Many Canadian parents are stretching themselves thin — even going as far as to postpone their retirement in some cases — in order to help pay for their children’s education, according to a new survey.
Police in Australia are investigating the suspicious death of a woman who used to live in Surrey, BC, after her body was found in her apartment on the outskirts of Sydney.
The wall of a major dam in a part of southern Ukraine that Moscow controls collapsed Tuesday, triggering floods, endangering Europe's largest nuclear power plant and threatening drinking water supplies as both sides in the war rushed to evacuate residents and blamed each other for the emergency.
A huge Soviet-era dam on the Dnipro River that separates Russian and Ukrainian forces in southern Ukraine was breached on Tuesday, unleashing floodwaters across the war zone.
It’s been 79 years since the war effort known as ‘D-Day,’ which eventually led to the liberation of western Europe during World War II. The day was marked with a service in Normandy with the Royal Regina Rifles on hand.
While Saskatoon Tribal Council (STC) publicly mulled moving its downtown emergency shelter to a location on 20th Street near the city's core, city documents reveal the wellness centre's present Fairhaven area location was heavily favoured early in the process.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
While firefighters get more forest fires under control in northern Ontario, travel restrictions declared under an emergency order are being expanded in several communities.
A 13-year-old male from Elliot Lake in northern Ontario has been charged with sexual assault again, bringing the total to 10, after another survivor came forward.
A grieving widow whose husband was run over and killed by a speeding OPP officer can't believe the force told her it won't hold a public hearing into the case because it decided the misconduct was 'not serious.'
Police in Australia are investigating the suspicious death of a woman who used to live in Surrey, BC, after her body was found in her apartment on the outskirts of Sydney.
Mounties in the town of McLennan, Alta. are hoping members of the public can help them identify two men who tried to steal a bank machine from the local ATB Financial.
Mounties in Peace River Alta. are asking residents to check their "businesses, homes, sheds and outbuildings" for any sign of 13-year-old Rocky Conrad Cardinal.
A grieving widow whose husband was run over and killed by a speeding OPP officer can't believe the force told her it won't hold a public hearing into the case because it decided the misconduct was 'not serious.'
Calgary-based Cenovus Energy says it has safely restarted a portion of its production that was shut down because of the threat of wildfires in northern and central Alberta.
A 53-year-old man was shot and killed in the Montreal suburb of Dorval on Monday afternoon. A source told CTV News that the victim is Francesco Del Balso, who has links to Montreal's Mafia.
One Quebec city that had been threatened by approaching wildfires has lifted an evacuation order, but other parts of the province continue to deal with out-of-control blazes that are taxing firefighting resources.
The wildfire burning at Centennial Lake, about 150 km west of Ottawa is still not under control, but the local mayor says it has been significantly reduced.
The federal government has given an updated deal to a public-service union that signed its collective agreement in the fall in order to match deals reached with the Public Service Alliance of Canada during a strike this spring.
Hammonds Plains Road reopened to traffic early Tuesday morning more than week after wildfires began in the Halifax area. Officials say the fires in the area are contained, though crews continue to deal with hot spots and flare ups.
Canada's emergency preparedness minister says images of wildfires burning across the country are some of the most severe ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity.
The provincial wildfire service is warning British Columbians to have a go-bag and make an evacuation plan with this year's wildfire season off to an alarming start.
Many Canadian parents are stretching themselves thin — even going as far as to postpone their retirement in some cases — in order to help pay for their children’s education, according to a new survey.
Real estate experts say B.C.’s housing market is heating back after cooling off due to rising interest rates but the future is uncertain as several economists expect the Bank of Canada to hike rates again.
The province is revealing its housing cards, as 37 more municipalities have been identified as the next group that will be required to create housing targets in their communities to help combat the ongoing housing shortfall.
A wildfire that has been burning out of control on Vancouver Island since Sunday morning is now estimated to cover approximately 20 hectares of dense forest near Port Alberni.
