Ontario's labour minister says the Ontario economy can afford an increase in the minimum wage.
Kevin Flynn is in Windsor today meeting with small business owners and toured the location of the new Gordie Howe Bridge.
In May, the province announced it was raising the minimum wage to $15/hour by 2019.
Speaking live in studio on AM800's the Lynn Martin show, Flynn says minimum wage is no longer a student or starter wage. "Over half the people that make less than $15/hour in this province are between the ages of 25 and 64."
He says people working minimum wage jobs are trying to raise a family and pay the bills.
"Somewhere in the past, I don't know when, we have got to this point where we decided we can devalue part-time work, even though it is the same work as the full-time work."
Ontario Labour Minister Kevin Flynn
Some farmers and greenhouse owners in Essex county have expressed concerns that the wage jump may force them out of business.