Minimum wage hike could hurt, warns restaurant group

Manitoba's restaurant industry says the upcoming minimum-wage raise could put some of its businesses in jeopardy.

The provincial minimum wage will increase 50 cents an hour to $8.50 on April 1. This is the eighth — and largest — increase to the minimum wage since the NDP took power in 1999.

The latest hike may be just too steep for some restaurants, said Scott Jocelyn, executive director of the Manitoba Restaurant and Foodservices Association.

About half of the 40,000 people employed by the industry are between 15 and 24, and for many it is their first job, he said.

"They're not raising a family, they're using it to get themselves established in the job market," Jocelyn said.

"To use it as a tool to fight poverty, as we hear so often, we don't think is the only answer."

Jocelyn also questioned the fairness of applying the same minimum wage to workers who can make extra money through tips and those who do not.

The province should consider creating a student wage, or a tipping wage, like Quebec, which allows businesses to pay servers 75 cents an hour less, he said.