EDMONTON - Public Interest Alberta is pleased with the Government of Alberta's decision to implement a $15 per hour minimum wage by 2018. Tomorrow, the minimum wage will increase by one dollar to $12.20 per hour and the liquor server rate will be eliminated.
"Public Interest Alberta has long advocated for a $15 per hour minimum wage," said Joel French, Executive Director of Public Interest Alberta. "This increase will help Alberta's low-wage earners when they need it most."
Public Interest Alberta released the annual low-wage data for 2016 earlier this month. It showed that nearly 1 in 5 employed Albertans are low-wage workers, that 60 percent of low-wage workers in the province are women and that 77 percent of workers earning less than $15 per hour are over the age of 20.
"Increasing the minimum wage plays an important role in reducing poverty in the province," French said. "At the end of the day, all Albertans working full-time should have the opportunity to earn enough to support themselves and their families."
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