Nunavut government hikes minimum wage to $16 an hour
Territory now has highest minimum wage in Canada
As of April 1, Nunavut workers will get the highest minimum wage in Canada: $16 an hour. (File photo)
Nunavut employers will be required to pay the highest minimum wage in Canada—$16 an hour—as of April 1, Nunavut Justice Minister Jeannie Ehaloak has announced.
“This represents a substantial increase from the existing minimum wage and will help support Nunavummiut and their families,” Ehaloak said on Thursday, March 12.
The new minimum wage is $3 an hour higher than the old minimum wage of $13.
It also means that at $16, the rate is higher than minimum wages in all other provinces and territories.
The Minister of Justice just announced that effective April 1, 2020 the minimum wage in Nunavut will increase from $13 to $16!
— AdamArreakLightstone (@AdamLightstone) March 12, 2020
After April 1, Alberta will have the second highest minimum wage at $15 an hour, followed by Ontario at $14, says information provided by the Retail Council of Canada.
As for the other two territories, the Yukon minimum wage stands at $12.71 an hour and the Northwest Territories minimum wage stands at $13.46, the Retail Council of Canada says.
Nunavut’s decision follows a consultation process the Nunavut Department of Justice did in September and October of 2019, when staff surveyed businesses and Nunavut residents, Ehaloak said.
“They also reviewed information regarding the cost of living in our territory, social supports available and the minimum wage levels across the country. The information gathered was used to determine the appropriate minimum wage for our territory,” she said in her statement.
She also said that over the coming weeks, the Justice Department will do an information campaign to ensure all businesses and employees are aware of the change.
Should be 18.00 in nunavut. Can of pop for almost 4.00. Can of beer at elks 10.00. Coop store is fair with food prices. Northern stores is a RIP off money maker winnipeg.
Good. It’s about time. Companies making millions if not billions of dollars (in Nunavut as well as across Canada) should be ashamed of themselves expecting to keep all their employees in a state of poverty so that they themselves can flourish.
They really need to do something about cigarettes in our territory. Highest percentage of smokers in the world live here in Nunavut. At $25 a pack, that is about $10,000 for a year if someone smokes a pack a day, let alone the health issues that come with smoking.
Many poor people use cigarettes so they won’t feel hungry. That is why most of them smoke and bum smokes. $25 is almost 2 hrs. of work at 16 per hr.
Watch for the prices to go way up at your local Northern Store… seeing as the majority of their staff currently get minimum wage this will mean almost a 23% increase in their wages. This added expense comes right off their bottom line so if they don’t raise them their CEO Edward Kennedy won’t get his obscene $2.5 million annual bonus again this year!