It's been almost a week since the minimum wage went from $10.20 to $11.20 in Alberta and the official opposition is already looking into the impact it's having on local businesses.

The Wildrose Party launched a minimum wage tour Monday morning with a stop in Okotoks where Cardston-Taber-Warner MLA Grant Hunter spoke with the Cactus Club Spa Salon tabling their concerns with the wage increase.

Hunter is the shadow Jobs, Skills, Training Minister for the Wildrose and says the NDP hasn't heard out both sides on the minimum wage increase.

"So one side of the coin says 'hey, $15 minimum wage sounds great' and this is what certain people are going to want to have," he says. "But how is it going to effect businesses, are they going to be able to stay in business? When you have a 50% increase in one of your highest expenses."

Eventually the Notley government will have minimum wage up to $15 per hour in the next three years, but Grant believes the wage should increase by economic profit, something that is hard to find right now in the province.

"Rate of inflation is a good way to increase minimum wage," he says. "The difference between us and the NDP is, the NDP say minimum should be actually a living wage, we think that is completely erroneous. It's a blunt instrument that doesn't work and it hasn't worked and to tell you the truth when you increase minimum wage the way their talking about increasing it, it actually increases unemployment."

Grant says when it comes down to business, he's hoping the NDP will take a look at the wage increase through an economic impact statement.

"Take a look at both sides of the coin and see what it's going to do," he says. "What we're saying is because an economy is going to have to bear that cost, there is trickle down effects and there's someone that's going to be affected by this and what's going to affect them? If they start losing jobs, that's who we're concerned about."

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