Parliament must work with urgency on helping families

Parliament must work with urgency on helping families

Bea Bruske: With care systems at a crisis point, runaway costs and a broken social safety net, MPs must get to work on solutions that help families now OTTAWA – While the pandemic rolls on with new disruptions, Canada’s unions are urging Members of Parliament to get down to work on helping struggling families when the House of Commons resumes sitting…

Statement from Bea Bruske on the death of Alexa McDonough

Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress, released the following statement today: “It was with great sadness that I learned of the death of Alexa McDonough, a true Canadian political giant. On behalf of Canada’s unions, I extend our sincere condolences to her sons, Justin and Travis, and all the friends and family she leaves behind, who will feel…

Resilience, Determination and Ambition in 2022

By Bea Bruske I think almost everyone can agree 2021 was a rough year. The pandemic we hoped was ending now rolls on with new variants and new disruptions. But in 2021 we also saw some hopeful signs of what’s possible when people work together in common cause. Workers with newfound confidence demanding better. People seeking out jobs that offered…

Statement of the CLC and provincial and territorial federations of labour in response to the Ontario Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee Report

The Canadian Labour Congress and Canada’s provincial and territorial federations of labour unanimously reject the recommendations of the report of the Ontario’s Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee (OWRAC) that would enshrine second-class status for gig workers. We believe every worker deserves the same high standard of protection under the law. Employers have long used excuses to misclassify their employees as independent…

Canada’s unions: Use fiscal update to reverse seniors’ clawbacks and emergency help for workers

Bruske: Parliament must act swiftly to help low-income seniors, the 1.2 million unemployed and the 630K working Canadians who want full-time work but can’t find it With low-income seniors and unemployed workers being left behind, Canada’s unions are demanding the upcoming Economic and Fiscal Update be more than an accounting exercise but instead include a course correction on key issues. “The most vital thing about a country’s…

Rank and file union members engage MPs with powerful stories about the need to end seniors’ clawbacks

Bruske: Hundreds of union members participated in CLC’s Action Week, telling MPs about low-income seniors being left behind and care workers in desperate need of a break Hundreds of workers have been engaging MPs about the need for swift action to help struggling seniors and better support care workers as Parliament works to end the pandemic and start Canada along…

MPs must listen to workers and take action on a fair recovery that makes life more affordable

Canada’s unions are making sure Members of Parliament hear from workers, as they get down to work this week. The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) is launching Action Week, where workers from across Canada will be directly engaging with MPs about their priorities. “Workers are raising their voices to make sure our elected representatives hear, loud and clear, about the need…

New worker lockdown benefit fails to benefit workers

Liberals miss the mark with new legislation, more needed to help Canadians Canada’s unions are disappointed in the federal government’s proposed legislation, tabled in parliament Wednesday, saying it will only entrench greater inequities and leave vulnerable and marginalized workers behind. “This bill has been conceived so narrowly, it’s not a pivot, it pulls the rug right out from under struggling…

Canada’s unions call on federal government to ratify and implement C-190

Canada’s unions are marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women by urging the federal government to live up to its commitments and finally ratify and implement International Labour Organization Convention no. 190 (C-190) on Violence and Harassment. November 25 marks the beginning of the internationally commemorated 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. Gender-based violence and…

President Bea Bruske available to speak about Canada’s unions’ priorities for new Parliament

With Parliament set to return – amidst rising inflation, stretching family budgets and an uneven economic recovery – Canada’s unions are focused on making sure MPs are ready to get to work on policies that put workers and their families at the heart of Canada’s recovery plans. Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress, is available to speak to…