It appears that Fernie is facing a hardship when it comes to a lack of workers for the service industry. There was talk at last week’s city council meeting that fast food restaurants are considering cutting their hours back because there is no one to work the late shifts.
This is evident in the reduction of operation hours at Tim Hortons, where they have reduced store hours from their trademark 24/7 operations down to a 10 pm closing. This is not the first time we have seen this, it just seems to be more prevalent. We have seen in the past a reduction in the hours of McDonalds, and Smitty’s as well.
So why is their a lack of interest in these jobs? I believe it has to do with the imbalance between the cost of living in Fernie and the minimum wage. How could anyone afford to live here while earning a mere $10.25 an hour?
Is the answer to this problem an increase in the minimum wage? Perhaps it is a partial fix. I do believe that B.C.’s minimum wage should be increased to $15 per hour at least, but I also believe that the government should be supporting small businesses in such a way that they can afford the increase instead of giving big corporations tax breaks. Perhaps they could use some of the money from the said corporations to offset the cost to small businesses.
With the lack of people willing to fill the gap in employment within the service industry come other more serious issues such as the safety of these workers. 7-eleven is now considering running their night shift with only one staff member on duty until they can hire more staff. A manager visiting from the Coast ensures that they have all the appropriate safety measures in place.
I’m sure everyone is familiar with Grant’s Law, the safety regulation that was put in place after Grant De Patie, while working alone, was dragged to his death in Maple Ridge trying to stop a robbery in 2005.
Grant’s Law initially required people working overnight at gas stations and convenience stores to be paired with another worker or protected by some sort of barrier. The law has now been watered down, giving employers a third option: requiring time lock safes for cash, surveillance systems, personal emergency transmitters and regular security audits.
Some of the issues have arisen with the changes to the tightening of the Temporary Foreign Worker program, as these workers were often used to fill the gaps in available employees, but this never was a resolution to the problem. It was always just a stopgap.
It is time that we find a way to right this ship. Perhaps it is time to revisit this issue and if possible, develop our community into a place where we restore the balance of affordability.
