The Globe and Mail is saying this afternoon that the Ontario government will halt a planned increase to a minimum wage hike that was scheduled to kick in January 1, next year.
The website says Labour Minister Laurie Scott intends to keep the minimum wage at $14 an hour rather than rising to $15 as planned.
See: Nipissing Decent Work petitioning to keep $15 minimum wage
That brought a reaction today from local Labour Council Communications Officer Jared Hunt.
"What we're looking at is the minister of labour making an announcement about something that they are planning to do, but until an MPP like Mr. Fedeli has an opportunity to put his hand up to say, 'No, I agree or disagree with a bill that repeals Bill 148 and the minimum wage change, nothing has changed. What I think is going on here is we've got a PC government here that is afraid to make the announcement as clearly as possible and bypassing the law to make this change.
"So Bill 148 and the scheduled legal change from 14 to 15 is law right now and until they table legislation to change that, nothing has changed."
Read the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act Bill 148 here.
Hunt says the change will greatly disappoint the government's own base.
"It's our understanding that two-thirds of Ontario is looking forward to the legal increase of 15 dollars. Forty-two per cent of the PC base is looking forward to it. So I think they're trying to make it sound like 14 is happening."
