Minimum wage is a poverty wage in Ontario

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released a report yesterday that calculates a living wage in Toronto to be roughly double the current Ontario minimum wage.

Minimum wage in Ontario is $8.25 an hour, scheduled to increase to $10.25 in 2010.

The CCPA study, by Hugh Mackenzie and Jim Stanford, calculates that a two parent family with two children would need to make at least $16.60 an hour, working full-time year round, in order to obtain a reasonable standard of living that promotes health, well-being and participation in the full life of their community.

The living wage for a single parent with one child would be $16.15.

The report also noted that Ontario is the only province where the number of jobs paying less than $10 an hour increased during the last decade. The impact on Ontario can be seen in the increased reliance on food banks, which increased 14% between 2001 and 2007.

For more information on living wages, check out Greg’s Catalyst article explaining the various movements towards a living wage in Canada.