Photo By Claire McCormack
The United Way of Bruce Grey is recommending the living wage in the region is increasing to $20.70.
In a report, the organization says the recommended living wage in Grey Bruce is seeing an increase of 12.5 per cent from its last report in 2019, recommending $18.39. This latest increase recommends various demographics earn around $21 an hour, 40 hours a week.
The organization found for a single person, it is recommended they would need to make $19.12 an hour for a livable wage, $24.74 for a single parent with two children, and for two parents with two children, each parent would need to make $21.05.
Executive Director Francesca Dobbyn says, “this is not a rate to aspire to, this is the least amount of money somebody should be getting paid. There is no savings, there is no education savings, there is no pets what so ever, there is no costs looking after family members, there is no paying off debts like students loans in this, so this is that bare-bones budget.”
Dobbyn says the most significant driver for this increase comes from the cost of housing.
“We see major increases in the costs of buying, but also in rentals. There has been a lot of turnover, a lot of reno evictions where the price and the rental rates goes up. We are seeing prices out there in the $1,000 for a room, $1,800 for a one bedroom” says Dobbyn.
Dobbyn adds she is hoping this report will let people know the money they are making is not a reflection on them.
“So we want people to recognize that you know what, you are struggling and that’s okay, everybody else is struggling too. We also want employers to recognize that paying a little more, might keep people around and they save money through that re-training and staff turnover. If they commit to people, people will commit to them, and that is the benefit of becoming a living wage employer,” says Dobbyn.
The United Way says when businesses provide a livable wage to their employees, they will find they are spending less on recruitment costs and training costs, there is better morale among the workers, their employees do not have to work multiple jobs to make ends meet, there is less fatigue as well as increased productivity, and they won’t loose people to the over 500 other certified employers who do offer livable wages.
The purpose of these reports, which started in 2014, was to use residents voices in a call to action to the Ontario Living Wage, a charitable organization aiming to bring attention to this issue.
Dobbyn says compared to the province, the region is in the top five most expensive places to run a budget for a household.
“I know we are in the higher range because of our rural community. Our two income families needs two vehicles on the road because we don’t have a transit system that would have a transit pass that would work for all of Bruce and Grey,” says Dobbyn.
The United Way says they calculated the living wage over the summer by looking at major expenses people face. These include shelter, transportation, childcare, and food, while also taking into account internet access, a modest annual vacation, and clothing. They also factor in applicable government taxes, transfers, and benefits.
Dobbyn says as living wage of almost $21 an hour is just keeping residents above water, making $25 an hour would allow people to live comfortably.
“It will give you health, it will give you savings, it will give you the ability to participate in society,” says Dobbyn.
Dobbyn encourages local businesses who wish to become livable wage employers to reach out to their local chamber of commerce to see if there are any aids available.
