The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

www.insidehalton.com | O AKVILLE B E A V E R | Friday, D ecem ber 1, 2 0 1 7 | 6 EDITORIAL |OPINION ABOUT US B ill 148: ch o o sin g people an d p ro fit Since the Ontario government announced a progressive mini mum wage raise to $15 by 2019 (Bill 148), there has been no shortage of voices forecasting economic doom and gloom. The voices of the over 50,000 citizens across Halton, cur rently eking out a living on minimum wage, were conspicu ously absent. The Halton Poverty Roundtable`s vision is to see every Halton resident with access to a livable income by 2026. As a multi-sector catalyst that brings together resources and partners around innovative and systems-focused solutions around poverty, we embraced income security solutions be cause of the members at our table with the lived experience of poverty. The voices have been telling us for the over six years we have been working together, it' s not just about shorter housing waitlists and more food banks, it' s about having the dignity of choice and of being able to live and not just subsist. There is a real need to change the questions being asked around Bill 148. Instead of `How will businesses afford to keep their doors open with this coming wage raise?', the question we need to start with is "Should someone working full-time have to access social services (food banks, Ontario Electricity Support Program, etc.) to support themselves or their family?" Some additional facts to consider include a reminder the minimum wage was frozen for 12 of the 20 years between 1995 and 2015. Sixty-two per cent of small- and medium sized business owners support a $15 or higher minimum wage (47 per cent about right plus 15 per cent too little) (Campaign Research, June 2017) Nearly 30 per cent of Ontario' s workforce earns less than $15 an hour, which means they are already below the poverty line, even if they work full-time. Poverty wages are bad for workers and the economy because low wages prevent them from being customers at local shops, beyond the necessities. The evidence shows 58 per cent of employers paying less than $15 an hour are big companies (100 or more employ ees); and only 23 per cent are small business. This past June, 53 prominent Canadian economists signed a letter stating raising the Ontario minimum wage to $15 by Jan. 1, 2019 is a good idea and is economically sound. They conclude taking all the research on minimum wage together shows raising the minimum wage leads to little or no job loss. In fact, it makes for better, more productive workplaces. November 5-11 was Living Wage Week. The report "Thriv ing in the City: W hat does it cost to live a healthy life?" re leased this past September by the Wellesley Institute shares that, based on identical research completed in Mississauga and Toronto, for a single, working-aged individual, between age 25-40, the cost of thriving is between $46,186 and $55,432 after tax. This isn't a luxury lifestyle; it means enough to afford personal care products, physical activity, transportation, etc. The response to poverty in our communities must be a collective response. It' s a false dichotomy to pit social justice hearts against business; the real problem is poverty and the so lution is working together as a community; Mahatma Gandhi said, "The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members." -- by Leena Sharm a Seth, director, Community Engagement, Halton Poverty Roundtable The Oakville Beaver, published every Thursday and Friday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 100 community publications across Ontario. View our digital edition online at: Insidehalton.com under Print Editions found in the footer. ·* m e tro la n d m e d ia · * C on n ecte d to y o u r community® The Oakville Beaver is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca News M e d ia Canada I M e dias d 'ln fo Canada National NewsMedia Council Loc Media hsasS editoi@oakvillebeaver.com E H @OakvilleBeav @oakvillebeaver insidehalto n .co m MyView Project Red Ribbon kicks off its 30th campaign T his year, 2 0 1 7 , marks the 30th year of MADD Canada' s Project Red Ribbon and I was honoured to be the government sponsor of this year' s holiday awareness campaign launch on Parliament Hill. The iconic red ribbon -- symbolizing the importance of always driving sober -- serves as a powerful tribute to the innocent people who are killed and in jured in impairment-related crashes. The most important way to combat impaired driving is prevention. Im paired driving is the leading criminal cause of death and injury in Canada and drug impaired driving is increasing. In 2 0 1 5 , there were more than 72,000 impaired driving incidents reported by police, including almost 3 ,0 0 0 drug-im paired driving incidents. From November to January, MADD Canada invites Canadians to wear or dis play the red ribbon as a symbol of their commitment to always drive sober. Pam D am off Oakville North-Burlington MP I was pleased to welcome the Minis ter of Public Safety and Emergency Pre paredness and the Minister of Justice, as see Commit on p.8 Pud by Steve Nease WHO WE ARE CONTACT US The Oakville Beaver 5 0 4 6 Mainway, Unit 2, Burlington ON L7L 5Z1 Phone 9 0 5 -8 4 5 -3 8 2 4 / Fax 9 0 5 -3 37 -55 6 8 Classified 1 -8 0 0-263-6480 Digital/Flyers/Retail Advertising 2 8 9 -2 93 -06 2 4 Real Estate/Homefinder.ca Advertising Suzanne Trickey / 2 8 9 -2 93 -06 7 7 / strickey@oakvillebeaver.com Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 2 0 0 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please call 1 -8 6 6 -8 3 8-89 6 0 or email Customerservice@metroland.com Vice-President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Neil Oliver Advertising Director Daniel Baird / dbaird@metroland.com / 2 8 9 -2 9 3 -0 6 2 4 M anaging Editor Angela Blackburn / ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com / 2 8 9 -2 93 -06 1 7 Regional General Manager Kelly Montague kmontague@metroland.com / 2 8 9 -2 9 3 -0 6 1 4 Director of Distribution Charlene Hall / chall@metroland.com / 9 0 5 -6 31 -60 9 5