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What does B.C. have that New Brunswick doesn't?
For one, it's got a metropolis in Metro Vancouver that has the highest average monthly rent ($1,154) in the country.
Yet as of today, B.C. will have the lowest minimum wage in Canada as New Brunswick boosts theirs to $8.25 an hour.
B.C.'s minimum wage remains at $8 an hour, which is what New Brunswick's was before its modest hike.
Entry-level workers in B.C. with less than 500 hours of experience are paid a paltry $6 an hour.
Jim Sinclair, president of the B.C. Federation of Labour, said it's "shameful" that B.C. now has the lowest minimum. Sinclair is dismayed by claims that increasing the minimum would hurt the economy, and by the B.C. Restaurant and Foodservices Association's opposition to the hike.
"I think it's shortsighted [not to raise the wage]," Sinclair said. "You talk about stimulating the economy but people who have no money don't spend money. To me, it's simple, get rid of HST and increase the minimum wage and spending will go up."
While most other provinces have gradually increased their minimum wage rates to reflect inflation, B.C. has not seen an increase in eight years, since the Liberals took power.
"I'm going to keep fighting for this because no one else will," Sinclair said.
"There are 300,000 people in the province working for minimum wage and they deserve a raise, just like the MLAs have been getting."