Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition office. Photo Courtesy of Macklen Linke/CKRW.
Whitehorse, YT – The 2025 Living Wage Report from the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition (YAPC) shows it’s getting significantly harder to make ends meet in Whitehorse.
A two-parent household now needs each adult to earn $25.91 an hour — up 14 percent from last year and more than 40 percent higher than in 2022. For a single person, the rate is $31.22, while a single parent needs $33.95 an hour to meet basic needs.
“This is the tenth year we’ve done this calculation, and the story it tells is increasingly urgent,” says Keitha Clark, YAPC Project Coordinator, in a statement.
The report notes that rent and utilities for a family of four now exceed $31,000 per year, while food costs are up nearly 4 percent.
The YAPC says government policies — like affordable childcare and housing — can help close the gap between minimum wage and the cost of living. Yukon’s minimum wage is currently $17.94 per hour.
This year’s report includes a new calculation for single-parent households.
