Better direction on job creation needed from Government in Throne Speech
CALGARY – The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) responded positively to this week’s announcement by the United Conservative Party proposing a series of reforms to Alberta’s employment laws, and encouraged all political parties to come forward with their own policy ideas on this critical area.
“Small and medium-sized businesses in Alberta have been through the wringer over the past few years. They have borne the brunt of punitive government policy changes to minimum wage, employment rules, the labour code, and OH&S requirements that made a bad economic situation a lot worse. Job creators need more flexibility and common sense put back into the system,” said Richard Truscott, Vice-President, Alberta and BC.
CFIB put check marks beside the UCP policy proposals to freeze the minimum wage at $15 an hour, allow a lower youth minimum wage to incent entry-level hiring, make calculating holiday pay and overtime more sensible, and restore the secret ballot vote for union certifications.
“Time and again, we have called on the Alberta Government to release its research on the impact of their policy changes have had on employment and the economy, only to be stonewalled. We’re pleased to see the UCP commit, if elected, to publicly release all the government’s analysis. Alberta must create policy based on evidence and research, not political optics and ideology,” concluded Truscott.
CFIB has challenged all political parties to adopt 10 policy ideas that would provide much-needed support to Alberta’s entrepreneurs:
1. Apply a “Small Business Lens” to all new government policy
2. Cut red tape
3. Reduce the Small Business Tax
4. Balance the budget, control spending
5. Refund the WCB surplus to employers
6. Scrap the Carbon Tax
7. Rebalance labour laws
8. Freeze the minimum wage, create a training wage
9. Push back on CPP payroll tax hike, federal tax changes
10. “Just say no” to a PST
The full Small Business Platform is available here.
About CFIB:
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small and medium-sized businesses with 110,000 members across every industry and region, including 10,000 in Alberta. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners’ chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.