Job Insecurity and Low Wages in Nova Scotia
A report released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives -- Nova Scotia on April 29 entitled "Decent or Precarious? Understanding the Quality of Employment in Nova Scotia," details the situation of workers in Nova Scotia and the growing number of workers who have no job security and whose wages do not meet their basic needs.[1]
Based
on Statistics Canada's 2024 Labour Force Survey and the 2025 Nova
Scotia Precarity Survey, an online survey that asked workers about
schedules, on-call expectations, changes in hours and income, benefits
and fear of losing work, the researchers found "a growing gap between
how hard people
work and the stability and security they experience. Wages are among
the lowest in Canada, and poverty remains high, while the cost of
housing, food, and utilities keeps rising faster than pay." Almost one
in three Nova Scotia workers, about 131,000, are in precarious jobs and
43 per cent are in
situations "just below the precarious threshold," meaning that one
additional negative change such as a reduction in wages would put them
into precarity.
Rates of precarity are much higher among temporary and part-time workers and more than half of young workers, those between 20 and 24, are in precarious jobs. In terms of sectors of the economy, accommodation, food services and retail, which account for about 20 per cent of workers, have the highest rates of precarity. Unionized workers, currently concentrated in the public sector, have greater security and stability, are more likely to be in permanent full-time jobs and to have access to paid sick days, benefits and pensions. Workers most likely to be in precarious work are those not in a union, paid low wages, in short-term jobs and working in small firms. The report found that low wages remain a defining feature of precarious employment in Nova Scotia, with almost one in three workers earning $20 per hour or less, nearly one in five in their job for less than a year, and 17.8 per cent working in small firms with less than 20 employees.
The study found that workers in Nova Scotia worked an average of 1,710 hours per year, slightly over the national average of 1,697, while their average earnings were lower than those of workers in every province and territory except Prince Edward Island. Nova Scotia has higher rates of poverty as well, with 13.8 per cent of Nova Scotians aged 18 to 64 living below the poverty line in 2023, compared with 11.6 per cent across Canada and second only to Saskatchewan at 14.2 per cent.
The study also identified the problem that government labour standards in Nova Scotia do not apply to all workers, are inadequate and outdated and lack enforcement, leaving many workers without protection.
The authors of the study call for raising the minimum wage from the current $16.75 (rising to $17.00 in October) per hour to $20.00 per hour. Other recommended changes include; imposing limits on very short or highly variable shifts; improving rules around scheduling and on-call work; expanding access to paid sick leave, paid vacation and employment benefits, providing greater protection for workers in temporary or casual contracts, agency work and app based and platform jobs, enhancing enforcement of labour standards especially in sectors and regions where precarious work is most common, and supporting unionization, especially in low wage, high turnover sectors.
Note
1. The definition the authors use for "decent work" is from the International Labour Organization (ILO) framework, "'productive work for women and men in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity.' This concept encompasses the following key elements: 'it pays a fair income, guarantees secure employment and safe working conditions, ensures equal opportunities and treatment for all, includes social protection for workers and their families, offers prospects for personal development and encourages social integration, and allows workers to express their concerns freely and to organize.'"
This article was published in
Volume 56 Number 28 - May 2, 2026
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/TML2026/Articles/T560284.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca