The Conservative Case for a Living Wage - A Hundred Years of History
In the late 19th century, New Zealand became the first country in the world to have a minimum wage. During and after the Great War, Canadian Provinces followed the example. Ever since then, there has been heated debate - not so much on whether or not we should have a minimum wage, but at what level that wage should be set. For a bit of historical context, there's a wonderful article available on JSTOR from the 1922 Journal of Political Economy, " The Minimum Wage in Canada ", contrasting the Canadian adoption of the minimum wage to American reluctance. The reasons for the implementation of the minimum wage in Canada ranged from recognition of successful implementation in other jurisdictions, to support within the labour movement (by contrast, apparently, to disdain within the US labor movement), and even support within our industrial sector "because it served to protect them against the competitive undercutting of wages." With additional women doing indu