Hamilton City Council will not be taking the final step towards becoming a Living Wage employer.
During what has been a contentious budget process, Hamilton councillors have voted against spending over $1 million to increase the salaries of all seasonal part-time employees to $15.85 per hour.
They rejected motions to offer the increase in 2017, or to phase it in over four years.
All full-time staff at the City of Hamilton are already earning more than the Living Wage, a figure that has been established by the Social Planning and Research Council.
Social planner Deirdre Pike has said that the calculation is based on a family of four with two young children, and what it costs them to pay for rent, food, childcare, transportation, education and recreation expenses.
The increase rejected by councillors on Friday would have applied to certain part-time staff, including crossing guards and library pages.
City Council could finalize the 2017 operating budget as soon as next Wednesday.
The average projected residential tax increase remains in the area of 2.4 per cent. That percentage will vary widely from ward-to-ward due to property value reassessments.