Key takeaways:
- The minimum pay in Newfoundland and Labrador will rise by 45 cents to $13.20 an hour.
- According to 2020 data from Statistics Canada, 43,500 Newfoundland and Labrador employees earn $15 an hour or less.
Wage increase in Newfoundland and Labrador:
Three ex-service industry workers state working for Newfoundland and Labrador’s lowest wage was mentally and physically exhausting — and not tolerable.
The minimum salary in Newfoundland and Labrador is $12.75, the fourth-lowest in Canada. On Tuesday, the regional government declared it would rise to $13.20 on April 1, 2022.
Marley Power helped herself by working minimum and lower salary jobs in St. John’s from 2014 till 2021. She stated the low salaries caused her to make frantic options, particularly during the first few years.
“It was terrible,” Power stated in an interview for CBC News. “There were so many weeks I had to decide between … paying my bills or spending for food.” Source – cbc.ca
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While working for the lowest wage, Power stated, she earned approximately $650 every two weeks, and, if she had to take a sick day, even less. Newfoundland and Labrador do not have paid sick days, though labor movement groups have been screaming for the difference in light of COVID-19.
Since she wasn’t making sufficiently to settle her bills, Power stated, her credit rating was “destroyed,” and she’s only now making it back up. She utilized the Metrobus because she could not make enough to afford a vehicle. Source – cbc.ca
Though she had regular work and got occasional raises during her time at a St. John’s café, she had to get clever to wring by.
“I would attempt to do everything to make toothpaste and shampoo and stuff last. I utilized to cut open the bottle then rub the inside out, so I could go another few days without having to purchase those needs.” Source – cbc.ca
