Daily grind for the working poor: One-third of workers earn less than $20 per hour, says report [video]

About one-third of workers in the Atlantic region are paid less than $20 per hour, leaving them in conditions of severe financial insecurity, according to a new report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

In New Brunswick, 33 per cent of workers earned no more than $20 per hour, and ten per cent earned less than $15 per hour, the report states, citing Statistics Canada. Similar figures were reported in Nova Scotia, P.E.I., and Newfoundland and Labrador.

That means that in New Brunswick alone, more than 114,000 workers take home less than a living wage, generally defined as the amount needed to “enjoy a decent quality of life and avoid severe financial stress.”

In the cities of New Brunswick, a living wage ranges from $21.65 in Bathurst to $24.50 in Fredericton, according to 2023 figures from the Saint John-based Human Development Council.

The “living wage gap” is likely to grow wider when those figures are updated, according to the CCPA report released Wednesday.

The report, titled Atlantic Canada Needs a Raise, prompted an immediate response from the New Brunswick Federation of Labour, which called for wage increases and the implementation of more robust labour standards and worker protections.

“The provincial minimum wage should ensure that workers can afford life’s necessities,” NBFL President Daniel Légère said in a statement. “Many families struggle to meet their basic needs. Financial insecurity impacts workers’ health, well-being, and overall quality of life.”

The minimum wage in New Brunswick currently stands at $15.30 per hour, compared to $15.20  in Nova Scotia, $15.40 in P.E.I, and $15.60 in Newfoundland and Labrador. Across the country, minimum wages range from a low of $14 per hour in Saskatchewan (slated to reach $15 in October) to a high of $19 in Nunavut, according to industry data.

Low-wage job opportunities are many and varied in New Brunswick, often involving significant responsibility and hard physical labour, according to a brief review of openings online.

New openings listed on Indeed.com include one for a Carpet, Air Duct and Water Technician in Fredericton at $16-$20 per hour, a Hotel Receptionist in Bathurst from $16 an hour, and a Shipper-Receiver in Moncton for $18 per hour.

Minimum wages are generally set through political processes driven by industrial lobbyists, resulting in wages that don’t keep up with the cost of living, according to the report, co-authored by Christine Saulnier and Kenya Thompson of the CCPA’s Nova Scotia office.

“This is a problem,” the report states. “Governments need to recognize the wage as a foundational and minimal protection against exploitation, and look more closely at the real household costs faced by working families to make these decisions.”

Across the region, the industry with the highest proportion of low-wage workers was accommodation and food services. In New Brunswick, 84 per cent of workers in that sector earned $20 per hour or less. The retail sector is also highly dependent on low-wage workers, with 69 per cent of New Brunswickers in that sector earning $20 per hour or less.

Women were more likely to be found in low-wage jobs in every province — 54 per cent of New Brunswickers in low-wage jobs were women, for example — a fact that won’t be lost on groups campaigning against the feminization of poverty.

The vast majority of low-wage workers in every Atlantic province were over the age of 20 and not students. Those stats are significant because industry groups often claim that low-wage workers don’t need a raise since they are ostensibly made up largely of students or young people living with their parents, a questionable argument considering high student debt levels.

The report also notes that in every Atlantic province except P.E.I., the majority of those earning $20 or less worked at companies with upwards of 100 employees — casting doubt on arguments that a higher minimum wage would be a catastrophe for small “mom and pop” businesses.

The report makes the case for higher baseline wages along with better working conditions overall, including paid sick days and more vacation time, along with greater investments in non-market housing and public services to reduce the cost-of-living burden.

The COVID-19 crisis shone a spotlight on the difficult and often dangerous conditions faced by “essential workers” unable to enjoy the privileges of the salaried professional class working from home in sectors such as information technology.

In 2021, the Higgs government implemented a widely-ridiculed five cent minimum wage increase based on inflation, at a time when New Brunswick’s minimum wage was the lowest in Canada. Following pressure from organized labour and anti-poverty groups, the province announced a series of one-dollar increases over subsequent years.

The minimum wage surpassed $15 per hour this year following the latest increase linked to the Consumer Price Index. The provincial government has argued that a CPI-linked minimum wage “provides stability and predictability for businesses.”

This article was updated to include the video interview with Christine Saulnier on Monday, July 29, 2024.

David Gordon Koch is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op. This reporting has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, administered by the Canadian Association of Community Television Stations and Users (CACTUS).