On July 17th, the Ontario Ministry of Labour announced that it has appointed a Minimum Wage Advisory Panel, chaired by Anil Verma, Professor of Human Resource Management at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. It is intended that the panel will examine the province’s current minimum wage policy and provide advice on how Ontario should determine the minimum wage in the future. The Ontario government’s recent announcement stated that the panel will also recommend a process to set future minimum wages in a way that is both fair to workers and predictable for businesses.
The panel intends to consult with business and labour groups, workers, anti-poverty advocates, young workers, and academics.
Interestingly, the current Ontario general minimum wage is $10.25 per hour, which is a 50% increase since 2003. As well, Ontario already has one of the highest minimum wages in Canada. That said, Ontario is one of only three provinces which does not have a formal mechanism for calculating or adjusting the minimum wage. It can be expected, therefore, that the panel is likely to endorse some sort of mechanism as part of its report.
Interested parties are invited to make submissions to the panel prior to October 18, 2013. Submissions may be made to the Minimum Wage Advisory Panel by mail to 400 University Avenue, 12th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M7A 1T7, by fax to (416) 326-7650, or by email to minimumwage@ontario.ca. In addition, interested parties can make online submissions through the Ministry’s website: http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/es/submissions.php.
