Comparative Raise

The raise that Ontario's MPPs voted themselves a week before Christmas must be compared with the proposed raise in minumum wage. If one works full-time for minimum wage in Ontario, they earn about $16,500.00 per year, though it is important to keep in mind that many minium wage jobs are also part-time. Ontario's MPPs, who prior to voting themselves a raise, made just shy of $89,000.00 per year, or rougly 5.4 times the minimum wage earner. Their raise- $22,000.00 per year- is the equivalent of what 1.3 minium wage earners makes in a year. And the MPPs don't have to work any harder than what they already do! (Which isn't very hard)

Cabinet ministers on the other hand will be making an extra $31,000.00 per year, or just shy of what 2 minimum wage earners make in a year. McGuinty, on the other hand, will be earning an extra $39,000.00 this year, more than double what a minimum wage earner working full-time in Ontario does. It would take more than a dozen minmum wage earner to reach his annual salary of $198,620.00 per year. Yikes!

And yet, the motion in the House is likely to fail, despite the fact that Ontario's MPPs have little problem voting themselves a nice fat raise. Let's remeber that this fall when we hit the polls.