Workers in British Columbia earned an average of $21.46 an hour in 2008, according to the latest annual wage data published by Statistics Canada. This was good news for workers at the average wage or better, and well above the minimum wage of $8. The average wage has gone up 25 per cent over the past decade (pre-inflation adjustment).
However, a closer look at the situation of workers in BC reveals some troubling facts about wages and hours of work, and the workers who are most likely to have low wages and/or insufficient hours. Hundreds of thousands of workers are still at wage levels that either trap them in poverty or put them at high risk of falling into poverty.
The CCPA is Canada’s leading organization for articulating progressive, positive social policy reform. Ever constructive and independent, the CCPA’s respected voice has helped produce substantial results in the movement for true democracy and equality of opportunity that all Canadians can support.
— David Eby, Executive Director
BC Civil Liberties Association