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The pandemic has hit low wage workers the hardest. A Statistics Canada labour force survey released in April 2020 found that those who earned minimum wage or less had their weekly working hours cut in half, working significantly less than those at a higher pay grade. In response, there have been calls to pay workers a living wage.
A living wage is an hourly wage that covers an individual’s basic expenses and allows them to participate in their civic and cultural community, according to Craig Pickthorne, communications coordinator at the Ontario Living Wage Network. The benefits of paying workers a living wage are numerous. Along with providing workers a level of financial security, a living wage also benefits the local economy. It’s for these reasons that advocates are pushing for a national living wage program and encouraging more employers to make the switch. We spoke to experts and living wage employers to explain what that means for Canadian workers and busi