Calls for increased minimum wage, as inflation rates soar in the Maritimes

Inflation rate highest in over 30 years Inflation rates are the highest they have been in over 30 years, with February having a rate of 5.7 per cent. CTV's Jesse Thomas reports.

If it feels like the price of seemingly everything has risen lately, it’s because it has.

“Pretty much everything is rising,” said Dalhousie economics professor Talan Iscan. “Over the last couple of months, there have been very broad-based increases in average prices.”

Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate climbed to 5.7 per cent in February — the highest it’s been since 1991.

And economists are saying the rate will likely continue to climb in the months ahead.

“It’s difficult to be optimistic that it’s going to revert itself to something a bit more normal in the very short run,” said Iscan.

The cost of gas has shot up as the Russian invasion of Ukraine creates volatility in the international oil market.

On top of that, supply chain issues amid the pandemic have only compounded the issue, and driven up the costs of goods, said Iscan. Adding that it’s hitting many people right in the wallet.

“It cost me like $180 bucks to fill my truck up and that’s outrageous,” said Eddy Ryley, a commercial painter who commutes for work, doing jobs across the greater Halifax region. “You fill up three times a week like I do, and that’s a lot of money spent on gas.”

Next to the price of gas, many Canadians are noticing a major increase in their grocery bill. The price of food at grocery stores has increased by 7.4 percent.

“Everything is so freaking expensive now,” said Ray Patterson, while grocery shopping in Dartmouth. “I don’t know how the young people do it. If they got a date, you can’t even go out and have a hamburger and pop now for 20 dollars.”

A lot of Canadians are impacted by the increase in costs, but especially those on a fixed income, says Dalhousie University professor and Canadian food researcher, Sylvain Charlebois. He says it’s time retailers give the consumers a helping hand.

“We’re going to be challenging the industry, and how the industry empathizes with consumers who are struggling,” said Charlebois. “They (retailers) have the opportunity to give them (consumers) the opportunity to do all sorts of things with coupons, flyers, apps, and things like that.”

As the national inflation rate is up, so too are inflation rates in the Martitime provinces. It’s the highest on Prince Edward Island, at 7.7 per cent, a bit lower in New Brunswick at 5.5 percent, and 5.4 percent in Nova Scotia.

Suzanne MacNeil, a spokesperson for the labour advocacy group Justice for Workers Nova Scotia, says the cost of living is too high, and it’s time for a major increase to the minimum wage.

MacNeil says the fight for $15 is now over, that just won’t cut it anymore.

“We’re calling for $20 an hour,” said MacNeil. “That’s about the average of a living wage in Nova Scotia.”

Justice for Workers Nova Scotia and other social justice groups are planning a rally next Thursday in front of the Nova Scotia Legislature.

They’ll be calling on Tim Houston’s PC government to look at a $20 dollar minimum wage when the Spring sitting returns to Province House.

In the short term, Charlebois says consumers should expect food prices to continue to climb as the conflict in Ukraine unfolds.

“It’s not going to happen over one month, it’s going to happen over several months,” said Charlebois. “But we’re going to start seeing some signs, impacts of what’s happening in Ukraine.”