(Quebec) François Legault acknowledged Thursday that it is difficult to live with dignity in Quebec when you earn $18 an hour.
The Prime Minister made this statement during an exchange in the House with the parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire (QS), Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois.
The latter demanded an increase in the minimum wage, from $14.25 an hour to $18 an hour, which Mr. Legault refused, according to whom the average wage should instead be increased.
“We want people who earn $25 an hour, which is roughly the average in Quebec, to increase to $26, $27, $28. That’s our goal. We have a lot more ambition than QS,” he said.
In his response, François Legault however admitted that “it is difficult to arrive with $18 an hour, especially when you have children”. A “shocking” and “very revealing” admission, reacted in an interview with Mr. Nadeau-Dubois.
He points out that 800,000 people in Quebec earn less than $18 an hour.
“What François Legault recognized today is that he is very aware that these 800,000 people are not able to arrive and that he has chosen not to change anything in this situation.
“He chooses to keep the minimum wage at a level that does not even allow them to live in dignity. It’s a choice he makes consciously,” Mr. Nadeau-Dubois said indignantly.