By Hassan Yussuff You can be forgiven if you’ve avoided thinking about the upcoming federal election all summer, but Labour Day is here. That means it’s time to return to the fall routine and start thinking about how you are going to cast your ballot. You may have seen politicians working the barbecue circuit, vying for the support of workers…

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…

Canadian unions condemn the use of excessive force against democracy protestors in Hong Kong.   In the last two months, hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong citizens have protested against an extradition law with China, perceived to undermine Hong Kong’s independence and restrict basic freedoms. These demonstrations have been met with an escalation in police violence, tear gas and rubber…

Canada’s unions applaud the federal government’s decision to restore tripartite decision-making to the Employment Insurance (EI) appeals process, an outcome of the Social Security Tribunal Review first initiated in 2017. Under the new system, EI appeals at the first level will be heard by a tripartite decision-making tribunal called the Employment Insurance Boards of Appeal, overseen by the Canada Employment…

Canada’s unions applaud today’s announcement by the federal government of new measures updating Canada’s drug-pricing regulations. “Many life-saving medicines are unaffordable. This new framework will better protect Canadians from skyrocketing drug prices by lowering the cost of brand name medicines,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff. “This is a good step towards a universal public pharmacare program in Canada.” Canada currently…

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…

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,…

Canada’s unions welcome a new three-year agri-food pilot program which will provide an additional 2,750 permanent residency opportunities for temporary foreign workers engaged in the sector, particularly in the meat industry. The proposed program, announced today by Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen, is open to full-time non-seasonal agricultural migrant workers and will help give them a pathway to permanent residency. “The…

Canada’s unions are calling on the federal government to ensure Canadian workers are protected from job and income loss following China’s recent ban on Canadian beef and pork exports. The ban was imposed after Chinese customs inspectors detected a prohibited feed additive in a batch of pork shipments labelled as Canadian. The Canada Food and Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirmed the…

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…