by Shayla Elizabeth

For a week in October, the Just Income Coalition – a Manitoba-based group that promotes economic justice for low-income individuals and families in the province – launched a coordinated campaign to address the issue of inadequate minimum wage levels. From October 2-10, 12 events were organized as part of "Just Income Week" to raise public and government awareness about how low wages affect the lives of Manitobans and hurt the economy.

The minimum wage is generally considered to be the economic benchmark of the wage economy, but since the 1970s, Manitoba's minimum wage has fallen steadily when adjusted for inflation. (If it had kept pace with increases in the cost of living, it would now be more than $9.25 per hour.) At its current level, the minimum wage is inadequate to meet the needs of most individuals and families. An adult with two children, for example, would have to work more than 85 hours per week just to reach Statistics Canada's Low Income Cut-off! Winnipeg Harvest, the City's largest food bank, reports that people who have jobs are the fastest growing segment of food bank users. Over the last half of the 1990s, the percentage of household income derived from work among families who depend on Harvest for food has risen from 19% to 27%.

The Just Income Coalition has recommended both a short- and long-term strategy for the provincial government to respond to poverty caused by low wages. They are advocating for an immediate $1 increase in the minimum wage (to $7.75 per hour), followed by regular increases until it reaches a living wage level of approximately $9/hour – or 60% of average weekly earnings. At that point, they argue, the rate should be indexed to some measure for annual adjustments, in order to ensure that its value is not lost over time.

Since its inception in the fall of 2002, the Just Income Coalition has grown from a small group of 12 organizations to a membership of over 60 individuals, including 30 supporting organizations. It is unique in having representatives from many sectors, including faith, community, labour, women's issues, Aboriginal, and social policy organizations. Coalition co-facilitator, Jean Altemeyer, says the common factor is that members are people focused on social justice and poverty issues, whatever their particular orientation. "It's important to work with other groups on shared concerns because wider voices can have more of an effect," says Altemeyer.

The idea for Just Income Week came about after a faith group in the Coalition expressed concerns that the "hit-and-miss" approach of organizing isolated events was ineffective in engaging the public and government in a meaningful discussion about low wages. Further, a petition calling on Manitoba's political parties to commit to the Coalition's recommendations had become stagnant. To counter this, the group suggested a more coordinated approach with an intensive series of events and activities over a short period of time. The principle was similar to that used by educators: you need to repeat something several times, in several different ways, if you want people to understand it and remember.

Together, the Coalition planned and supported 12 different events, ranging from street theatre to public forums. The Coalition also took advantage of media attention generated by the week's activities to collect signatures for their petition at each event. The unofficial slogan became "A just economy, a just community, a just world. A just income for all," and giant boxes of macaroni and a giant baloney served as visual symbols.

A grand opening at Air Canada Park in the heart of downtown Winnipeg launched the week's events on October 2nd. Folk singers Stuart and Russell performed songs written especially for Just Income Week, and a Winnipeg troupe, Just Theatre, presented the "Unjust Income Circus" to illustrate the myriad of troubles that plague people who must subsist on minimum wages. The circus acts included a minimum-wage juggler, a debt-defying lion tamer, and a healthy-nutrition tightrope walker who was foiled by a big box of macaroni and a giant baloney.

On October 3rd, a news conference was held at the food bank to announce the release of an open letter signed by leaders of 15 Manitoba faith groups endorsing the campaign. The letter, called "Making the Desert Bloom," urged the government to raise the minimum wage to a "living wage" in order to provide "workers at the bottom of the wage scale with sustenance, dignity and hope." It was the first time in many years that Manitoba church leaders had jointly signed a letter on a social justice question, and the diversity of faith leaders demonstrated the broad ecumenical support for this issue. The message of a just wage was also the focus of Sunday worship services with a poverty kit developed by the faith group to guide the services.

On October 6th, the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg (SPCW) and the Economic Development Council for Manitoba Bilingual Municipalities (CDEM) hosted a roundtable on poverty for francophone community groups. A presentation by Marcel Lauzière, President of Canadian Council on Social Development, promoted the need to develop a multidisciplinary and holistic approach to social policy development.

Lauzière also spoke the following day at the Aboriginal Centre, to a forum hosted by the SPCW and the University of Manitoba's Faculty of Social Work, in which he stressed the importance of putting social development at the centre of the policy agenda. Another event held that day was a workshop, "Poverty in Canada Today," hosted by Kairos at the Kateri Church and facilitated by Joan Johannson, a local poverty advocate, author and politician. This forum allowed people to discuss mainstream ideology and values and to contrast those with alternative views.

On Wednesday, four different events were held. The Student Christian Movement at the University of Winnipeg hosted a discussion on "Student Poverty Today." The SPCW and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Manitoba, hosted a noon-hour seminar at Red River College's downtown campus focussing on national and local perspectives on minimum wages. Ken Battle, President of the Caledon Institute of Social Policy, spoke about his report, Minimum Wages in Canada: A Statistical Portrait with Policy Implications, which provides a comprehensive analysis of minimum wages across Canada.

At the University of Winnipeg's Faculty of Theology Chapel, a child poverty vigil was held with interfaith prayers, candle lightings and readings by students from the Horizons Adult Learning Centre. They provided first-hand experiences of the struggles and hardships that result from trying to survive on minimum wages. The final event that day was a forum co-sponsored by the Provincial Council of Women of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg's Department of Politics, called "(Un)Just Income: Passport to Poverty." The forum featured presentations by Mr. Battle, Gail Watson, Coordinator of the Women, Income and Health Project for the Women's Health Clinic, and Sharon Taylor, Executive Director of Wolseley Family Place. In addition to discussing the broad picture of minimum wages across Canada, this forum focussed on the adverse health impacts of poverty on women, and portrayed the tragic conditions that women living in poverty experience, out of the public eye and far below public consciousness.

The gala event of Just Income week was the L.I.T.E. 1st Annual Benefit Concert, "Taking it to the Dance Floor," held at the West End Cultural Centre. CBC journalist and stand-up comedian Al Rae acted as the Master of Ceremonies for the evening's activities, which included the launch of a video, songs by Stuart and Russell, acoustic guitar by Lindsay Jane, the Unjust Income Circus, and a dynamic performance by an 11-member Aboriginal band, Burnt, featuring a blend of blues, jazz, rock, funk, and traditional First Nation influences.

The final event of Just Income week was the presentation of the petitions – with 7,867 signatures – which were delivered to Steve Ashton, the Acting Minister of Labour, Jon Gerrard, Leader of the Liberal Party, and Jeff Parr, Deputy Minister of Labour. Representatives from each member organization of the Coalition were at the Legislature as Mr. Ashton accepted the petitions and reaffirmed his government's commitment to continue to improve the minimum wage.

Attendance throughout the week's activities was encouraging and included community activists, academics, students, government representatives, members of the business community, and members of the general public. Media attention was overwhelming and it is hoped that this will help encourage ongoing debate and discussion about Manitoba's minimum wage.

In the recent Speech from the Throne, the Manitoba Government announced a 25-cent increase to the minimum wage, effective April 2004. This will raise Manitoba's minimum wage to $7 per hour and while this is encouraging, Coalition members worry that it does not go far enough, fast enough. "We want action and we want it to be substantial," says Wayne Helgason, a Coalition spokesperson. He notes that one in five Manitobans – generally Aboriginal persons, women, people with disabilities, and single parents – currently lives below the poverty line.

In the upcoming months, the Coalition plans to meet with the Premier and his Caucus to advocate for a substantial increase to the minimum wage and indexation towards a living wage. The success of Just Income Week has confirmed that there is support in Manitoba for a just minimum wage, but Coalition members know that there is still more work to be done in order to ensure that this becomes a reality.

To find out more, visit www.just-income.ca or by e-mail info@just-income.ca. The Just Income Coalition can also be reached by phone (204) 943-2561 or fax (204) 942-3221.

Shayla Elizabeth works with the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg.

Editor's Note:

On January 2, 2004, the Manitoba government announced that it would hike social assistance rates for the disabled, single people and childless couples by $20 per month, beginning in February. A single adult will now get $466/month, while a single person with a disability will receive $696/month. David Northcott, Executive Director of the Winnipeg Harvest food bank said that while this additional money is certainly welcome, it is only a fraction of what is needed. A single person on welfare will now receive just under $5,600 a year. "When the poverty line for a single person is $15,300 a year, $5,000 is not nearly enough," Northcott said.

The NDP government also announced that it would phase out the clawback of the National Child Benefit from social assistance cheques for children aged 12 to 17. (Manitoba had already phased out the clawback for children under 12.) Anti-poverty advocates were thrilled with this development. "The extra benefit won't get them out of poverty," said Wayne Helgason, Executive Director of the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg, "but it will certainly help the depth of poverty." Ending the clawback will be a significant improvement for Manitoba's poorest families, according to Family Services and Housing Minister Christine Melnick. "That puts $13.7 million directly back into the hands of low-income people in our province," Melnick said.

And, as announced in last April's provincial budget, the minimum wage will rise by 25 cents to $7 per hour on April 1st.

Marcel Lauzière is Executive Director of the CCSD.

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