Alberta’s minimum wage will be $15.00 an hour by 2018.
Provincial Labour Minister Christina Gray says cabinet has passed the required regulation not only to raise the rate to $12.20 an hour this October, but also to boost it by $1.40 an hour again in October 2017 and finally in October 2018.
The changes can only be rescinded by Premier Rachel Notley’s cabinet or by a successor government.
The move aligns with promises made by Notley and Gray to hike the wage.
Gray said it’s critical to pay lower-end earners a fair wage, adding the money will be re-invested into the economy.
Business and industry groups and opposition critics have been urging Notley’s government to rethink the hike or at least further investigate its implications on the economy before acting.
They say the wage hikes are too much too fast and threaten to further cripple businesses still reeling from the protracted slump in oil prices.
Notley has repeatedly said her government won’t relent, and earlier this summer dared opposition leaders to take action.
