Canada’s unions mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities

Canada’s unions mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities

Over half a million Canadians with disabilities are ready and able to work but can’t because of barriers to employment and training. To mark the 27th anniversary of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD), Canada’s unions are expressing support for the My Canada Includes Me campaign, which aims to support employment for Canadians with disabilities. “The Canadian Labour…

Canada’s unions mark World AIDS Day with call for equality of care

Canada’s unions will mark World AIDS Day on December 1, acknowledging that an HIV positive diagnosis is no longer an automatic death sentence. With effective treatment and care, many people living with HIV are leading long and healthy lives. In 1990, a 20-year-old diagnosed with HIV was not expected to live past the age of 40—today, that same person could…

Statement on educational sector collective bargaining in Ontario

The 55 unions represented on the Canadian Council of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) declare their support for Ontario’s education unions that are demanding the government support high-quality education. Members of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association, and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation have overwhelmingly voted to stand up and fight for publicly-funded…

Unions mark Gender Equality Week with election demands

Canada’s unions are marking Gender Equality Week 2019 by calling on federal political parties to commit to creating a fair Canada for everyone. “Gender Equality Week was created to celebrate recent gains while reflecting on the work that needs to be done to improve gender equality and women’s rights across Canada,” said Marie Clarke Walker, Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Labour…

Improving the lives of workers is sound business sense

By Hassan Yussuff, as published in the Toronto Sun. There will always be those who believe that the most important aspect of any business is the bottom line, regardless of how such tunnel vision can negatively impact the lives of workers. But the best employers understand that a sound business model includes nurturing workplaces in which their employees are treated with…

Global Day of Action for the Amazon

Today, on the Global Day of Action for the Amazon, Canadian labour calls on the Government of Canada to safeguard protections for the Amazon rainforest in its trade agreement with Brazil and the Mercosur countries. In its ongoing negotiations on the Mercosur trade deal with Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, Canada must ensure the agreement contains enforceable provisions that uphold…

Labour Day 2019: Unions seek to put fairness on the ballot

This Labour Day, Canada’s unions are launching a campaign to make fairness a ballot box question in the October federal election. That means unions will be calling on Canadian workers to vote for candidates who support universal pharmacare, retirement security, climate action, equity and inclusion, and good jobs for everyone. “Over the last four years, our work has resulted in…

Strong job numbers mask reality of struggling young workers

OTTAWA – The country’s strong job numbers aren’t providing the full picture when it comes to the participation rate of young workers in the economy, according to analysis by Canada’s unions. While unemployment rates continue to fall overall, many Canadians aged 15 to 29 are staying in school or giving up looking for work altogether, according to the Canadian Labour…

Labour Market Snapshot – Q2 2019

In the CLC’s latest Labour Market Snapshot, analysis shows that Canada’s strong job numbers mask the reality of struggling young workers.   While unemployment rates continue to fall overall, many Canadians aged 15-29 are staying in school or giving up looking for work altogether. In particular, the number of people aged 25 to 29 who are not in employment, education,…

Universal pharmacare should be an easy pill to swallow

By Hassan Yussuff, as published in the Toronto Sun. Finally, some good news for the millions of Canadians who have to choose between paying for groceries or their prescription medications. Canada’s Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare has laid out a clear path for public, single-payer, universal pharmacare in its final report. “The time for universal, single-payer, public…