The minister of labour says minimum wage and living wage mean different things to many people, but a lot of work has to be done before going to the next step.

The House of Assembly unanimously passed the concept of a guaranteed income, but the resolution contained little in the way of detail, as is the norm with private member’s resolutions.

Minister Gerry Byrne says all aspects of such an approach to employment compensation have to be considered because a living wage for a single person with two children is very different from a living wage to a student with no dependents. However, he feels it is a discussion worth having.

He says if an employer is required to pay a living wage, they may tend to opt to hire the student instead of the person with two children.