What was the minimum wage in Canada around 1960?

Answer 1

British Columbia adopted the Men's Minimum Wage Act in 1925, making it the first province to legislate a minimum wage for male workers. Almost a decade passed before other jurisdictions extended the minimum wage to men: Manitoba and Saskatchewan (1934), Alberta (1936), Ontario and Quebec (1937). Prince Edward Island was the last to do so, in 1960 (it had established a minimum wage for women only the year before). It should be noted that the minimum wage rates for men were initially set higher than for women, since it was assumed at the time that men should be a family's main breadwinner. Gender-based minimum wage differences slowly gave way to the principle of equal pay during the 1950s, and disappeared entirely by 1974.

Until the early 1970s many provinces also had zones or geographical differentials whereby workers in urban centres were paid a higher wage than those in rural areas. At the beginning of 1960, for example, six provinces had such zones. The reason for having different minimum wage rates was the generally higher cost-of-living in the cities compared to rural areas.

Throughout the history of the minimum wage there have also been various other differentials. Youth differentials were once very common, though many jurisdictions have repealed them since the adoption of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982. Occupational differentials have been and still are rather common. For example, domestic and farm workers have generally been excluded from minimum wage provisions or, if not, have been entitled only to a lower minimum rate. Occupations like restaurant workers, hairdressers, salespersons, and construction workers have also historically been treated separately. In addition, the legislation of almost all jurisdictions allowed the employment of workers with disabilities at rates below the legislated minimum, usually under a system of individual permits. However, as has been the case for youth differentials, many jurisdictions have repealed such provisions since the early 1980s.