In my last letter, I made an observation about the gentrification in Squamish and the possibility of a $15/hour minimum wage. Most of the negative responses I received were from some of the local business owners I know in the area. They were mildly uncomfortable with the thought of this happening. To be clear in my letter, I wrote: “Maybe it’s time we visit the $15/hr wage like Seattle.” Maybe.
Any business has existing expenses already that it has to pay such as power, water, building maintenance, local taxes and, in some cases, leases and franchise rights. It doesn’t have the option to not pay these, and this is even before buying stock and hiring staff.
They also pay wages, pay taxes on the wages to the government, and pay for sick days and injured workers. They may pay benefits and holiday pay. Some workers abuse the system, so this costs employers more money. Sometimes the employer has to pay a fine. It’s all money going out.
If you pay everyone $15/hr, for a business, it needs to take the money from Peter to pay Paul, so to speak. The business has to look at its revenue and see where it can get this money. In most cases it has to charge more for its product and services to make money – or have less staff. Because the business doesn’t want to lose money, the costs get passed down to us – the customers. Mom-and-pop shops have tight budgets and are often hit hardest by cost increases.
In most cases where wages were raised, the customers paid for it, not the corporation.
Jason Bechard
Squamish
