Minimum wage hikes lead to job losses in New Brunswick
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Minimum wage: Reframing the Debate
A new report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) challenges the effectiveness of minimum wage policy in Canada. Minimum Wage: Reframing the debate reveals that minimum wage increases tend to hurt the very people they are supposed to help.
Contrary to claims that minimum wage increases do not adversely affect the economy, CFIB's research shows increases have a negative impact on jobs. To illustrate, the report estimates a 10 per cent increase in minimum wage across all provinces costs up to 321,300 jobs nationally.
To put the numbers in perspective, in New Brunswick, if both scheduled minimum wage increases go ahead as planned - from the current $9/hour to $9.50/hour in April and then to $10/hour in September, this will represent a 11 per cent increase in one year alone. The New-Brunswick economy risks to lose anywhere between 1,900 and 7,000 full-time jobs. These job losses will take the form of hiring freezes, slower employment growth, or direct job cuts.
Small business owners aim to offer competitive wages that will help them attract and retain good staff. We believe it is high time government implement other, more effective measures of helping low income earners, particularly through the income tax system and through training initiatives.
