Media releases

In the lead up to Labour Day weekend, Public Interest Alberta, in partnership with the Alberta College of Social Workers, released new data on low-wage workers from Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey. It shows that 354,700 workers, making up 18.6% of employed Albertans, earn $15 per hour or less.

Today Public Interest Alberta and the University of Alberta’s Dr. Kristopher Wells, Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Policy Studies, released Making the Grade, an analysis of four Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity policies that school boards have submitted to Alberta Education.

EDMONTON—Public Interest Alberta joined the Minister of Labour for her announcement this morning on the roll-out of the government's plan to implement a $15 per hour minimum wage by 2018.

EDMONTON—Public Interest Alberta Executive Director, Joel French, and Chair of Public Interest Alberta's Democracy Task Force, Larry Booi, will be presenting to the Select Special Ethics and Accountability Committee this morning. They will be discussing the Democracy Task Force's submission to the committee, entitled Strengthening our Democracy and sharing the Task Force's recommendations for changes to campaign and party finance and electoral reform in Alberta.

EDMONTON—The Alberta Ministry of Labour held a consultation yesterday on how it should implement its commitment to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2018. The meeting included representatives from social advocacy groups, labour unions, and business organizations.

EDMONTON—Alberta’s 2016-17 budget released today marks a significant drop in government revenue. The total projected revenue of $41.4 billion for 2016-17 is a $1.5 billion drop from last year and an $8.1 billion drop from two years ago.

EDMONTON—The Edmonton Social Planning Council, the Alberta College of Social Workers, and Public Interest Alberta released a new report, “The Path Forward: Opportunities to End Child Poverty in Alberta” on the eve of the Alberta government’s 2016 budget.

EDMONTON—A new poll asking Albertans how they would like revenue raised by a proposed carbon tax spent indicates that by more than a two-to-one margin, people favour spending it on green energy projects, transit and energy efficiency improvements.

EDMONTON—Public Interest Alberta Executive Director Joel French called on MLAs and government to reject MLA Rick McIver’s Motion 504, and instead to end provincial funding for private schools and absorb charter schools into the province’s school boards.

EDMONTON—The Speech from the Throne was delivered today by Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Lois Mitchell. It pledged to protect health care and education in the face of the government’s severe revenue shortage.