The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives has made five recommendations to the province’s minimum wage review committee, including raising the amount to $20 an hour.

The submission was co-authored by Memorial University political scientist Russell Williams, who says linking the minimum wage to the cost of living and improving data collection to ensure informed labour-market decisions were among their other recommendations.

Williams says even raising the minimum wage to $20 wouldn’t help close the gap toward a so-called living wage because of current inflation rates.

He says low-income households spend a much larger share of their income on food and housing, “so they’re really being hit hard at the moment, and that’s why we’re recommending that the province do a pretty serious reset.”

That, says Williams, includes adjusting the minimum wage rate, and re-examining “how they calculate it going forward.”