Updated: Sun Nov. 01 2009 14:51:56

ctvbc.ca

Young workers held a rally in downtown Vancouver Sunday to protest the provincial government's minimum wage.

Sunday marked eight years since B.C. raised its minimum wage. The province's $8-an-hour minimum wage is the lowest in the country.

"Keeping the minimum wage now just means higher profits for corporations," Stephen Vonsychowski of the Vancouver & District Labour Council Young Workers Committee told CTV News.

"We're just talking about a more reasonable slice of the pie for those people who are making the lower incomes."

The B.C. Federation of Labour is calling on the provincial government to increase the minimum wage to $10 an hour.

"(Premier) Gordon Campbell said his government didn't need to raise the minimum wage when the economy was creating jobs. Now that we have lost tens of thousands of jobs, he says we can't afford to raise it," Jim Sinclair, the federation's president, said in a statement.

The minimum wage in the Prairies ranges from $8.80 to $9.25.

Next year, Ontario's minimum wage is set to go up to $10.25, Newfoundland's will grow to $10, and Nova Scotia's will increase to $9.65.

The issue of raising the minimum wage was a polarizing issue during the May provincial election, with NDP Leader Carole James promising to raise the wage if her party took power.

"Hard work deserves to be rewarded. We will increase minimum wage," James said at the time. She also promised tax cuts for small businesses to help offset the increased payroll expenses.

The Liberal party maintained the plan would cost B.C. taxpayers more than just higher payrolls.

"With Ms. James' plan 50,000 jobs will disappear from small business overnight," Campbell said during the campaign.

"I haven't heard a small business person in the province say, 'Please add $450 million to small business costs.'"