TIMMINS, ON – The Ontario Living Wage Network (OLWN) has released its 2024 living wage calculations, revealing that workers in Timmins now need to earn $20.30 per hour to cover basic expenses. This represents a 2.5% increase from the previous year’s figure of $19.80, reflecting ongoing challenges with the cost of living.

“The living wage is a crucial metric for understanding what it takes for individuals in our community to make ends meet,” said Noella Rinaldo, Director of Community Economic Development at the Timmins Economic Development Corporation. “With this updated figure, we can continue to identify gaps and better support our workforce in participating fully in the community,” Rinaldo added.

While the average increase across Ontario is 3.34%, the rise in Timmins is slightly lower. However, the impact of rising rental costs continues to strain household budgets.

Unlike the provincially legislated minimum wage of $17.20 per hour, the living wage is calculated based on actual local costs of essentials such as food, shelter, and transportation. This year’s living wage estimates integrate housing data from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and Statistics Canada, with additional insights from the Canadian Rental Housing Index for smaller communities.

In addition to rising housing costs, other expenses such as food and transportation have also seen modest increases. However, families are experiencing some relief in childcare costs thanks to the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program, which has helped reduce fees for younger children, though costs for older children have seen a slight rise.

The living wage is not mandatory but offers local employers the opportunity to voluntarily commit to paying wages that align with the actual cost of living in their region. Employers who choose to become certified living wage employers sign a license agreement and pay an annual fee, which supports OLWN’s ongoing work to calculate living wages, recognize employers, and promote fair wages across the province.

Find a list of all certified employers here.

Learn how the living wage is calculated or become a certified living wage employer, visit ontariolivingwage.ca.

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For more information, contact Noella Rinaldo at noella.rinaldo@timmins.ca or 705-360-2600 x7083

About the TEDC

The TEDC is the city’s non-profit community economic development team. We facilitate and support economic and social activity that creates jobs, diversifies the economy and improves quality of life.

Land Acknowledgement

The TEDC acknowledges that we are located on the traditional Lands of Mattagami First Nation, Flying Post First Nation, and Matachewan First Nation, home to many Ojibway, Cree, Oji-Cree, Algonquin and Métis people. We also acknowledge that we are situated in Treaty 9 territory (also known as the James Bay Treaty), which is steeped in the rich Indigenous history of many First Nations, Metis and Inuit People.