Belleville Chamber of Commerce CEO Jill Raycroft (File photo: Quinte News)
The ripple effect of the rise in minimum wage is already being felt.
Jill Raycroft, CEO of the Belleville Chamber of Commerce says the perception is that workers who made close to the minimum wage prior to the increase will also be seeing an increase in wages.
She says back in June, they surveyed Chamber members and the main concern wasn’t the 20% increase per se.
She says those unintended consequences may actually limit morale instead of building it.
Raycroft also noted that in our area, in order to be competitive, employers were already paying above the minimum wage.
She also says it adds another challenge for businesses to deal with.
She pointed out that 80% of the work force aren’t making minimum wage, but are in fact making above that.
Raycroft says the increase in wages will actually mean less money in the pockets of some people, once subsidies are taken into account.
