Minimum wage hike won't kill jobs: CCPA / Brinks workers in Alberta ratify new labour contract
Minimum wage hike won't kill jobs: CCPA
OTTAWA — A hike in minimum wage has no effect on employment levels, a recent study reports.
Released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (an independent non-profit research group) on Oct. 21 and penned by two Unifor economists, the report noted there is no consistent connection between a higher minimum wage and employment levels.
"Our results confirm that stimulating more purchasing power in the economy is the most important way to support job creation," said Jim Stanford, author of the study and economist with Unifor and the CCPA.
Looking at the relationship between minimum wage and employment levels in all 10 provinces between 1983 and 2012, Stanford said there was no evidence directly linking the two for better or worse. Instead, the research concluded employment levels are determined by macroeconomic factors. That means raising the minimum wage could just as likely result in a more robust labour market.
The CCPA report comes on the heels of other such studies, particularly from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, that raising the minimum wage is not a benefit it purports to be.
"An increase to minimum wage forces small businesses to look for ways to absorb the cost through measures such as reduced hours, reduced training, or even job cuts," a statement from the CFIB said.
But boosting the minimum wage, particularly toward living wage levels, can not only promote greater equality, but will also stabilize the labour income share of the GDP and reduce poverty, the CCPA report added.
"Those with a vested interest in keeping wages down have exaggerated the alleged unemployment effects of raising the minimum wage," said Jordan Brennan, another economist with Unifor and the CCPA. "The minimum wage is not solely an anti-poverty measure — it has a broader effect in strengthening labour incomes."
Brinks workers in Alberta ratify new labour contract
CALGARY — Alberta workers with the logistics cash provider Brinks recently ratified a new labour contract.
The new collective agreement — negotiated with Teamsters Local Union 362 — includes wage increases of 2.5 per cent to three per cent every year for the next four years.
Approximately 230 workers are covered by the contract. The agreement will expire in September 2018.
The union also negotiated a new pension plan, set to start on Jan. 1, 2015. The employer will make contributions to the Prairie Teamsters Pension Plan, along with a Health & Welfare Plan provided by the Prairie Teamsters Health & Welfare.
According to the union, this agreement makes Alberta Brinks workers the highest paid in the country, with the best benefits.
The contract also includes improvements to several non-monetary clauses.
"The negotiations were tough but I am very satisfied with the outcome," said Lance Wallace, a union representative. "The bargaining committee and the workers banded together for a common cause and today reap the rewards of their efforts."
