Edmonton’s Living Wage – 2017 Update

Making the Minimum

Calculating Edmonton’s Living Wage

2017 Update

This report outlines the 2017 update to our calculation of Edmonton’s 2017 Living Wage.

Edmonton’s living wage for 2017 is $16.31/hour. This represents the wage that two adults, each working full time, in a family of four requires to live in economic stability and to maintain a modest standard of living. The living wage amount allows a family to afford basic necessities, to avoid financial stress, to encourage healthy child development and to fully participate in their communities (Canadian Living Wage Framework, 2015).

The living wage for 2017 is $0.38 less than the 2016 amount of $16.69/hour and $1.05 less than the 2015 amount of $17.36/hour. This difference is mainly due to the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) being in place for a full year and the enhanced Alberta Family Employment Tax Credit (AFETC). Both the income threshold and benefit amounts of the AFETC were increased and indexed to inflation in the 2017 provincial budget. Unlike the AFETC, the CCB is not scheduled to be indexed to inflation until 2020 (Edmonton Social Planning Council, 2017).

F. SOCIAL ISSUES/F.05 INCOME/2017_LIVINGWAGE_UPDATE_20170626_V4.pdf