BC's Living Wage Is Revealed & This Is How Much You Need To Be Earning For A Basic Life

The living wage in B.C. just went up and if you live in Metro Vancouver, it's now $5 more than the rest of the province.

Metro Vancouver's living wage is at $20.52 per hour, which is way higher than the B.C. minimum wage of $15.20 — that's the equivalent of $37,346 annual salary.

A report from Living Wage for Families B.C. found the living wage by calculating the hourly amount that each of two working parents with two young children must earn to meet their basic expenses.

Anastasia French, Living Wage for Families BC organizer, said that "the reality is that a number of families across B.C. earn less than a living wage and struggle to make ends meet with the rising cost of living, especially the cost of housing."

The wage is based on what it takes to cover basic things like rent, food, child care and transportation.

Family expenses like these in Metro Vancouver and Victoria rose by 7% and 6.8% respectively, the report said, which is more than the rate of general inflation (4.7%) over the same time span.

The annual report provided the living wage amount for 14 communities in B.C.

Living Wage for Families BC

According to the findings of this report, in Metro Vancouver, two parents working full-time are going to have to make at least $5.32 over the hourly minimum wage just to live a basic lifestyle.

The report said that they estimate a 7% rise in the cost of living in Metro Vancouver since 2019. Housing alone rose by 8.6% in the last two years.