QUEBEC -
Quebec's minimum wage is going up by 50 cents an hour next May -- the biggest increase in the rate since 1975.
Labour Minister David Whissell announced in Quebec City today that more than 250,000 workers will get $8.50 an hour as of May 1, 2008.
For a person who works 40 hours a week at the minimum wage it will mean an extra $1,000 a year in gross income.
The minimum hourly wage for restaurant workers and others who receive tips will rise to $7.75 from $7.25.
Some garment workers will see their minimum wage climb to $8.50 an hour from $8.25.
Close to six per cent of Quebec's salaried workers earn minimum wage, with most of them employed in the retail, hotel and restaurant sectors.
