B.C. Minimum Wage Rise Puts Small Business Costs Back in Focus

B.C. minimum wage will rise from $17.85 to $18.25 per hour on June 1, a 2.1 per cent increase. Daily Hive framed the change through the lens of small business owners who are already dealing with tariffs, fuel costs, weaker consumer spending and thin margins.

The wage increase is only 40 cents an hour, but Merchant Growth told Daily Hive that many businesses are facing several cost pressures at once. Its survey found that 38 per cent of B.C. businesses did not pass added costs to customers last year, while 28 per cent passed on less than a quarter of added costs.