Yukon's minimum wage to increase by 50 cents to $15.70 in April

The minimum wage in Yukon is going up by about 3.3 per cent.

As of April 1,there will be an increase of 50 cents, taking the wagefrom $15.20 an hour to $15.70 an hour. The Yukon's minimum wage is based onthe consumer price index for Whitehorse.

The fair wage schedule, paid to people working on government-tendered construction contracts, will also increase on April 1 by 3.3 per cent.

In a news release, the territory said a rise in inflation is increasing costs in the Yukon.

"This increase will help people earning minimum wage to afford necessities. It will also help businesses attract and retain employees," the release said.

The Yukon is one of six provinces and territories that have a minimum wage at or above $15 an hour, including British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Nunavut.

By April, the Yukon's minimum wage will have gone up by about $2 in the span of a year. In April 2021, the minimum wage in the territory went from $13.71 to $13.85 per hour. It was bumped up to $15.20 last August.

The release notes the increase to minimum wage is an elementof the Confidence and Supply Agreement whichissupported by both the Yukon Liberal caucus and the Yukon NDP caucus.