17 April 2019
Hon. Trevor Holder, Minister of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour
Chestnut Complex
P. O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1
Via email: trevor.holder@gnb.ca
Re: Notice Period for Minimum Wage Increases
Dear Minister Holder:
I am writing today regarding minimum wage increases in New Brunswick. Employers are in favour of cost certainty and costs commensurate with their ability to pay more – i.e. a growing economy. For this reason, our members are generally in favour of tying increases in minimum wage to the provincial Consumer Price Index – which we wrote in our consultation submission in December 2018. However, the benefits of cost certainty – the ability to plan and adjust other parts of the business – are lost without a sufficient notice period prior to the increase.
That is why we heard from members that announcing the 2019 increase during Minister Steeves’ budget speech was not sufficient. Our members have told us that at a minimum, three months is necessary to incorporate the new rate into their business, but ideally would prefer to have six months’ notice before the new rate takes effect each year.
As you can appreciate, operating a business and creating jobs is a complex, multifaceted and increasingly costly endeavor. In the past couple of years business owners have seen increases in personal income tax, gas and diesel tax, a new statutory holiday, HST, corporate tax, WorkSafeNB premiums, a carbon tax and a generational hike to Canada Pension Plan premiums.
Each new cost must be paid for either from the owner’s pocket or through passing the costs onto customers and that takes some time, particularly given the large number of other cost increases over a short period. We therefore ask that future increases are announced three to six months in advance of April 1st each year.
Sincerely,
Krista Ross, CEO,
Fredericton Chamber of Commerce
