Ward 11 Alderman Brian Pincott | City of Calgary Office of the Aldermen

On April 6th, Calgary City Council will debate whether to adopt a living wage policy. When this item came to committee last month, we heard over 30 submissions from the public. Social leaders, those who would directly benefit from the policy, local business and some of our city’s finest spiritual leaders made presentations to committee that overwhelmingly supported a Living Wage Policy for all City of Calgary employees.

What is a Living Wage policy?

A Living Wage Policy proposes to pay City employees sufficiently to allow them to live at the poverty line, through an hourly wage that is based upon a 35 hour work week. In Calgary, that amount is $12.00/hr with benefits or $13.25 without benefits. This pay will enable a worker to reach the Low Income Cut-off for Calgary, which is about $22,000 per year. The committee also heard that to include all City of Calgary workers, full and part-time, would cost The City of Calgary, in a worse case scenario, $400,000 a year. A Living Wage policy that was inclusive would directly impact over 600 employees.

Why should we bother with a living wage for City of Calgary employees? What are the benefits of doing this?

In a nutshell, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We know that investing in people pays a social dividend. That is why as a society we publicly invest in education and youth recreation programs; why we invest in programs such as critical hours; why we build affordable housing. Living Wage is about investing in people.

John Rook of the Salvation Army described a Living Wage Policy as a low cost, high return investment. Estimates for a return on ‘investment’ in a Living Wage Policy suggest that for every dollar we invest in paying someone a living wage we get three dollars back. That return to society comes in the form of increased taxes being paid, increased consumer spending power and decreased reliance on social services. The Salvation Army began paying their staff a living wage when they realized some of their own staff were accessing the very services they were providing.

Paying people a living wage makes economic sense on the social investment side, but it also makes good business sense. Private enterprise has, over the years, undertaken a myriad of employee benefits such as providing group health benefits coverage, teleworking arrangements, condensed work weeks, onsite recreation and gym facilities, to name a few. These incentives are made available to employees not for simply altruistic purposes, but because they pay off on the company bottom line. A happier, healthier staff leads to increased productivity, a decreased turnover rate, and fewer sick days, all of which in turn saves expenses and leads to more robust business.

Paying employees a living wage works the same way, companies are paying a living wage because it is good for business. Employees who only have to work one job to make ends meet are far more productive at that one job. There is higher company loyalty which directly relates to improved customer service. Decreased staff turnover means less that must be spent on training.

Across Calgary, businesses and organizations are making the decision to pay their employees living wages. Noted earlier, the Salvation Army has already made this change. Last year, First Calgary Savings was recognized for their own living wage policy. This year the Calgary Chamber of Commerce received an award for their living wage policy; they recognized a need to show leadership to the business community, and began with their own staff. Small business is getting on board, led by companies such as The Unique Blend, who, in a recession, is expanding their business in part because of the competitive advantage that their living wage policy gives them.

Policies that put people first are sound both socially and economically. That only makes sense. A Living Wage Policy is an investment in our employees and through them in our future. Those employees who would stand to make a living wage by such a policy are single parents, whose children will better off; they are students who are investing in their education, becoming more productive citizens. Those who benefit are often the main income earner for their family, a living wage will allow for more opportunities to participate in their community, outside of work.

We must adopt a Living Wage Policy that makes a real difference, one that can deliver positive benefits for everyone. We cannot take the substance out of a policy that has the power to affect real change, and then call it “leadership.” To quote Tim Richter of the Calgary Homeless Foundation, quite simply ‘it is a case of pay now or pay later.’ Paying later will cost much more than the small investment that we can make in Calgarians now. Calgarians, all Calgarians, deserve to be put first.