School District 69 (Parksville/Qualicum) unanimously passed a living wage policy on April 25th, 2012. It is the first school board in Canada to have such a policy.
‘THAT the Board of Education of School District 69 (Qualicum) establish and implement a Living Wage Policy that is tied to the hourly rate established annually using the Living Wage for Families calculation methodology; and, THAT the Living Wage Policy will apply to all School District employees (full-time, part-time and casual) and all service providers and contractor staff.’'
The 2012 living wage calculation for Metro Vancouver has risen to $19.14/hour. This represents a 33% increase over the 2011 living wage of $18.81/hour. The increase was driven by a number of factors that changes over the course of a year, including: shelter costs rose by $76/month, childcare fees rose by $33/month and MSP premiums are increasing by 6%/year.
Read more at A Living Wage for Families.
In a 29-12 vote, Toronto city councillors have thrown a wrench into Mayor Ford's plan to reduce the city budget by contracting out all cleaning jobs. The council which would normally only look at contracts worth $20million or more, has voted to oversee all contracts.
For the eighth consecutive year BC has the worst child poverty rate in Canada, after taxes. Over 137,000 BC children live in poverty and the number is climbing. Nearly 74% of children in poverty live in two-parent families. The report highlights who is faring the worst; including recent immigrant families, female lone-parent families, racialized families and families with a child with a disability.The report also provides solutions from implementing living wage policies to providing affordable child care.
