EDMONTON, AB – If you live in Lethbridge, you’ll need to make close to 20 bucks an hour, on average, in order make ends meet.
The Alberta Living Wage Network (ALWN) has released its new living wages across the province.
The living wage is an hourly rate of pay needed for a household to maintain a modest standard of living, once government transfers have been added to the family’s income and taxes taken off.
Lethbridge’s living wage is $19 an hour according to the network, which is about average when compared to Alberta’s other big cities.
The highest living wage wage in the province is in Canmore at almost $38 an hour, folloed by fort McMurray at $27.35.
Franco Savoia, the Chair of the Alberta Living Wage Council, says about 400,000 Albertans live in low income and about 60% of those people are considered working poor.
“These Albertans often have to work multiple jobs just to get by. While struggling to support themselves and their families, it becomes difficult to save for the future or to be financially resilient when faced with difficult life events that cause unforeseen expenses. Living wages help lift up these individuals and are a necessary component to resilient cities and the economy,” said Savoia in a news release Monday.
The ALWN says many businesses have faced unprecedented challenges from the pandemic and related restrictions. The organization notes the intention of releasing living wages is not to add further stress to these companies, but to shed some light on what it actually costs to live in cities and towns in Alberta.
The new 2021 living wages are as follows:
- Calgary: $18.60
- Canmore: $37.40
- Chestermere: $18.60
- Cochrane: $22.60
- Drumheller: $19.70
- Edmonton: $18.10
- Fort McMurray: $27.35
- Lethbridge $19.00
- Red Deer $17.15
- Rocky Mountain House $18.05
- Stony Plain: $17.20
- Strathcona County: $16.80