Mayor Gillingham will not support motion calling for all city workers to make a living wage

The debate over implementing a 'living wage' for all workers will continue at City Hall despite direct opposition from Mayor Scott Gillingham.

"I am not supportive of this motion," said Mayor Gillingham Thursday. "To me, wages are established, and should be established, through collective bargaining processes."

"When you raise the base rate of any wage in the City of Winnipeg, all the other classifications, will want and seek a bump accordingly. It's not one band of wages that gets impacted, it's every band of wages within the collective agreement," he said.

The motion, originally put forward by Coun. Cindy Gilroy and Coun. Matt Allard in December, seeks to create a baseline "living wage minimum standard" for all employees of the City, also extending to all contract or subcontract workers and any organization that receives municipal funding.

$19.21/hour is cited in the motion as a 2023 living wage rate for a two-child family in Winnipeg, calculated by the Canadian Centre For Policy Alternatives (CCPA-Manitoba).

According to the CCPA, there are currently 13 positions with the City of Winnipeg that offer less than the organization's calculated living wage.

"They're the only ones to calculate a living wage," said Gillingham. "Anything good needs to be vetted and cross-checked. That needs to be considered as well."

While Mayor Gillingham is prepared to debate the motion it is being sent to the Executive Policy Committee for further review.

The CCPA's living wage calculation includes costs related to transportation and medical costs, among other measures. Gillingham says City of Winnipeg workers receive benefits under their collective agreements that would offset such costs.

"At its core, the living wage is based on the principle that full-time work should provide families with the basic level of economic security and not keep them in poverty," said Nial Harney, senior researcher with the CCPA, a delegate at Thursday's council meeting.

The living wage for a single parent is set higher, at $25.46, with the CCPA report citing an increased financial burden on one-income households.

An engagement process conducted by the public service department found "overwhelming public support" for the idea of a living wage, according to the motion.

David Grant, who a delegate who submitted comments in writing, is decidedly against the concept.

"For companies that depend on city contracts, and which must compete with low-wage competitors, expect disaster," Grant wrote to council members.

The Executive Policy Committee will debate the motion further at their next meeting.