OTTAWA – Canada’s unions welcome today’s federal announcement of an expansion of the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) to include those who are still making moderate incomes. “The expansion of the CERB to include those continuing to work in low-income, precarious jobs is an important step,” said Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). “This move will be a…

OTTAWA – Canada’s unions welcome today’s quick passage of the federal government’s bill to legislate wage subsidies. With unanimous consent of all parties, Bill C-14: A second Act respecting certain measures in response to COVID-19 passed during a special sitting at the House of Commons. The bill will now pass the Senate and receive Royal Assent by the end of…

Canada’s unions say further efforts are required to support unemployed workers and to preserve existing jobs as the number of Canadians who have lost their jobs due to the pandemic continues to rise. According to Statistics Canada, employment fell by one million in March and the ranks of the unemployed grew by 413,000. Canada’s unemployment rate rose by 2.2 percentage…

By Hassan Yussuff, as published in The Globe and Mail Across the country, Canadians are stepping up even as the world feels as though it’s turning upside-down. We can see, perhaps now more than ever, how critical it is for governments to support and strengthen our society as a whole. That includes ensuring that all workers and the most vulnerable…

This National Day of Mourning, we recognize the many workers in Canada who have lost their lives or who have been injured at work. While we honour the lives lost and those changed forever, we also stand with all essential workers at the frontline of the current crisis. Workers in healthcare, grocery stores, food processing, transport and so many others wake up…

OTTAWA – Canada’s unions are calling on the country’s financial institutions to do more to mitigate the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic by further reducing credit card interest rates and applying new rates to anyone with a credit card. “This pandemic has led to major disruption in the lives of many Canadians and is taking a financial toll. Many…

In 2020, we are celebrating International Day of Pink – a day to raise awareness and combat homophobic and transphobic bullying and harassment – in the context of a global pandemic. While many us are making sure that we #stayathome, we still need to be aware of the threat of homophobic and transphobic violence that persists online, at home, and…

For World Health Day 2020, the World Health Organization is celebrating the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife. Right now, nurses and midwives are working shoulder to shoulder with all health care workers at ground zero of the largest pandemic in modern history. Health care workers are working overtime, playing a critical role for their patients across the country…

Canada’s unions are calling on Canada’s banks and credit card companies to step up and take action to support families through the COVID-19 crisis by reducing sky-high credit card interest rates. “The Bank of Canada has reduced its lending rate to historically low levels and that means it’s cheaper for financial institutions to borrow money,” said Canadian Labour Congress President,…

April 4, 2020 marks the day women’s median earnings in Canada finally catch up to men’s median earnings from last year. This year, Equal Pay Day takes place with the backdrop of an unprecedented test for workers, their families and the economy: the COVID-19 pandemic. “It takes 16 months for women’s median earnings to catch up to what men make…