“Delegates at the CLC’s most recent convention reaffirmed our commitment to fight for justice for workers in all their diversity. This includes combatting inequities and barriers facing people with disabilities by advocating for barrier-free workplaces and creating pathways—alongside employers and governments—towards meaningful employment opportunities for people with disabilities across Canada,” said Bea Bruske, President of the CLC.

Against the backdrop of a worsening affordability crisis—which is leaving more than 1.5 million people with disabilities below the poverty line in Canada—approximately one third of people with disabilities who are actively looking for work are shut out of the labour force, with racialized people with disabilities in particular facing significantly higher rates of unemployment.

In addition, persistent discrimination and ableism in the workplace continue to impact the experiences of workers with disabilities. Twenty percent of workers with disabilities consider themselves overqualified for their positions, which is a form of underemployment, and one-third of workers with disabilities aged 25–64 do not ask for accommodations for fear of negative consequences.

The impacts are serious:

• The hourly wage gap between workers with and without disabilities widened from $1.91 in 2023 to $2.22 in 2024. 
• Workers with disabilities get fewer hours on average due to involuntary part-time work, which results in a weekly wage gap of $115.20, almost $6,000 per year.

Unions have a proven track record of success when it comes to employment outcomes and persons with disabilities. In fact, sectors with higher unionization rates also tend to have better rates of hiring and retention of workers with disabilities. For example, workers with disabilities have been more successfully employed in the federal public sector (with a unionization rate of 76%), compared to the private sector (with a unionization rate of only 34%).

Unions are also powerful partners in designing and implementing employment programs that target workers with disabilities.  

• Unions work to eliminate physical barriers that limit workplace accessibility.
• Unions negotiate health benefits and leaves that are often crucial to workers with disabilities and push to extend these benefits to all workers by lobbying for universal pharmacare, leaves, and other supports.
• Unions have negotiated, or arbitrated, the accommodation needs of individual workers when necessary.
• Finally, unions have lobbied for improvements to legislation, including workers’ compensation legislation, short- and long-term disability plans, and accessibility improvements in our workplaces and our union spaces.

“The trailblazing work of union-driven inclusion models in workplaces across Canada means that the blueprints for success and effective partnerships with worker organizations are already there. Unions are ready to work together to eliminate barriers to accessibility in the workplace and in our communities,” said Bruske.

This year, National AccessAbility Week will also coincide with the recently adopted Injured Workers Day in Ontario. Canada’s unions have always recognized that any worker can become a worker with a disability at any time during their employment life cycle. That’s why we continue to fight for strong workers’ compensation and vocational supports that meet the needs of workers injured on the job.

Addressing workplace culture by promoting inclusivity and accessibility through education, awareness raising and training initiatives, while ensuring adequate workplace accommodations are already in place, and working proactively together with employers, government, and worker organizations, means that we can all enjoy safer, healthier and more accessible workplaces.

—

Learn more about what unions are doing to promote safer, healthier and more accessible workplaces. Check out the Workplace Health and Safety resources available on the CLC’s website.

The post National AccessAbility Week: Canada’s unions committed to barrier-free workplaces appeared first on Canadian Labour Congress.

“The Canada Disability Benefit was a landmark initiative and legacy program left over by Canada’s last Liberal government,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “However, the benefit amount and current rollout plans fall significantly short of addressing the disproportionately high levels of poverty faced by persons with disabilities in this country.”

The CDB represents a critical step toward addressing these challenges, providing direct financial assistance to 1.6 million Canadians currently living in poverty—including workers with disabilities—and laying the foundation for a more inclusive economy. With unanimous passage in June 2023 and draft regulations published in June 2024, this new benefit is scheduled to roll out in July 2025.

However, concerns remain regarding the CDB’s low amount of only $200 a month, restrictive eligibility criteria, separate application process, and the risk of provincial clawbacks.

The CDB is a vital opportunity to reduce poverty, advance equity, and uphold the dignity of millions of people with disabilities in Canada. That’s why Canada’s unions are joining disability justice advocates across the country in demanding action from our federal government to ensure the benefit truly lifts people with disabilities out of poverty, including:

• Increasing the base amount—the benefit should lift disabled people out of poverty, providing an income that is above Canada’s official poverty line;

• Cutting the red tape—automatically enroll those already eligible for other disability benefits; and

• Ensuring there are no clawbacks—the CDB must be a top-up to other income and disability support programs for all levels of government.

“The ball is now in Prime Minister Carney’s court: it’s time to improve the benefit and increase access, now,” said Lily Chang, Secretary-Treasurer of the CLC. “By making the Canada Disability Benefit better, our government can solidify its legacy as a champion of fairness and equality, demonstrating leadership that resonates not only with those directly impacted but with all Canadians who believe in a society that leaves no one behind.”

Learn more about the campaign to improve the CDB, led by Disability Without Poverty, here.

The post National AccessAbility Week 2025: Federal government must provide a better benefit appeared first on Canadian Labour Congress.

This week marks Mental Illness Awareness Week, which is aimed at raising awareness and increasing action in support of Canadians living with mental illness. More than two million Canadians have a mental health related disability and one in three Canadians will be impacted by mental illness in their lifetime.

According to a recent poll, 40 percent of Canadians reported feeling like they were at a mental health breaking point, while almost 60 percent said someone in their immediate circle of close friends, co-workers and family members has suffered a mental health crisis.

“People living with a mental illness must have access to social safety nets that will help them live in dignity and pursue decent work. Unions welcome the new disability benefits bill because we believe it is part of the solution to pull back the barriers that work against people with mental illness in our society,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC).

People with mental illness are disproportionately unemployed when compared to their counterparts in the labour market, and consequently, they are more susceptible to living below the poverty line. Even when they are employed, they are more likely to receive wages that are either at or below minimum wage. The Mental Health Commission of Canada found that up to 90 percent of people living with a serious mental illness are unemployed.

The Commission also found that a rising number of people with mental illness are transitioning to various federal, provincial, territorial and private income supports, a situation that has only gotten worse since the COVID-19 pandemic began. What’s worse: these income support programs have already been proven to provide insufficient and inconsistent financial resources that often deepen the economic disparities faced by people with disabilities in Canada compared to the general population.

“Unions across Canada will stand in solidarity with our coalition partners in the disability rights and disability justice movements demanding that this government live up to its promise to build a Canada without barriers. Fast tracking the disability benefits bill is a critical part of fulfilling that promise,” said Lily Chang, CLC Secretary-Treasurer. “Reducing disability poverty through the adoption of Bill C-22 is the right thing to do.”

The Canada Disability Benefit bill was first introduced in the throne speech of fall 2020. It was then reaffirmed in the 2021 mandate letter for Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough. Learn more about advocacy efforts to fast track the benefits bill from the National Disability Without Poverty Network.

The post Political leaders must work together and fast-track Bill C-22 on Disability Benefits appeared first on Canadian Labour Congress.

“It is past time that the Canada Disability Benefit be re-introduced in Parliament and fast-tracked into legislation,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “With COVID-19 still disrupting our lives and the cost of living sharply increasing, this legislation is critical to improving economic security and quality of life for persons with disabilities.”

First promised in the 2020 Speech from the Throne, Bill C-35, aimed to establish the Canada Disability Benefit. It was tabled in June 2021, but died on the Order Paper when the 2021 federal election was called.

Earlier this month, the federal NDP introduced a motion calling on the federal government to re-offer its proposed disability benefit. The motion passed unanimously in the House of Commons, putting pressure on the Liberal government to reintroduce Bill C-35.

While consultations are underway regarding the specifics of the benefit’s design, disability groups have been advocating for a fast-tracking of the legislation and drafting of the benefit to help address the critical and immediate needs of the disability community.

“The theme for this year’s NAAW is ‘Inclusive from the start’. Yet so many people with disabilities face tremendous barriers to inclusion – barriers to employment, to affordable, accessible and supportive housing, to access the care they need to live dignified lives. Many fall through the cracks of existing income support systems and as a result experience significant poverty and marginalization” said Lily Chang, CLC Secretary‑Treasurer. “A well-designed Canada Disability Benefit would help lift people out of poverty. Without it, meaningful inclusion is not possible.”

NAAW runs from May 29 to June 4. The week is an important opportunity to celebrate the contributions of people with disabilities, highlight the critical work being undertaken to eliminate barriers and strengthen calls for improved accessibility and greater disability inclusion.

–

Email your MP to urge them to support and help fast-track the Canada Disability Benefit using Disability Without Poverty’s “Write Your MP” tool.

Check out Doing Things Differently: A Disability Rights At Work Handbook. The CLC resource includes a comprehensive guide on the duty to accommodate, a checklist for organizing accessible events and many more practical resources for supporting disability rights in our workplaces, in our unions and in our communities.

The post Canada’s unions call for fast-tracking of Canada Disability Benefit appeared first on Canadian Labour Congress.

“Canada’s unions and workers with disabilities are gratified to see federal accessibility legislation implemented in this country,” said Larry Rousseau, Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). “We are extremely pleased to see the efforts of our allies in the disability rights movement finally realized.”

The introduction of national accessibility legislation is a key aspect of the provisions and mandates in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities for all signatory countries. Canada ratified the Convention in 2010.

Almost a decade later, the Congress joins advocates in the disability rights movement across the country as they celebrate the implementation of a national strategy and vision to better the lives of persons with disabilities in Canada.

Since the introduction of Bill C-81 in June 2018, the CLC has participated in numerous government consultations on the employment-related aspects of the legislation, calling for amendments to enshrine the role of unions and protect members’ bargaining rights. You can read our submission here.

 “Although we did not see all of our recommended amendments reflected in the legislation that was presented in the House of Commons for third reading, we remain committed to working with this government to develop regulations that protect the rights of workers with disabilities,” said Rousseau.

National AccessAbility Week is marked each year as the last week of May, and is an opportunity for all Canadians to recognize the efforts of the disability rights community, and celebrate the contributions of persons with disabilities. You can learn more about the origins of National AccessAbility Week here.

The post Canada’s unions celebrate historic accessibility legislation appeared first on Canadian Labour Congress.

Along with their allies in the disability rights movement, Canada’s unions recently welcomed the introduction of Bill C-81, the Accessible Canada Act. However, they would like to see more focused attention on the identification and removal of barriers to employment at workplaces across Canada.

“For decades, the disability rights community has advocated for the introduction of federal legislation on accessibility,” said CLC Executive Vice-President Larry Rousseau. “We are pleased to see the government deliver on its promise for this legislation, but they will need to go further to truly remove barriers for workers with disabilities.”

Given that the Act identifies “employment” as one of seven areas specified for the identification and removal of barriers, and the prevention of new barriers, the CLC has identified a number of amendments to improve the efficacy of the Act.

In particular, new workplaces standards on accessibility would be developed in the Act without any language that mandates the inclusion of unions or considers the important role of bargaining agents in the development of these standards. As such, the CLC is calling for amendments to the Act that:

• protect workers’ bargaining rights;
• establish clear enforcement mechanisms that support employer accountability and compliance; and finally
• integrate an intersectional framework throughout the Act that recognizes the diversity of identities and barriers of people with disabilities.

“We are committed to working with this government to adopt and implement an amended Act that sets an example for countries around the world,” said Rousseau. “This is our opportunity to put Canada on the map as a global accessibility leader.”

The CLC has also called for amendments that would ensure C-81 aligns with and enhances the application of other existing legislation, regulations, policies, programs and services. This includes ensuring consistency between the legislative application and treatment, standards and requirements of employers in C-81, and those in existing legislation, such as the Employment Equity Act.

You can read and share our full submission on the Accessible Canada Act here.

The International Day for Persons with Disabilities was first proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1992.

The post Canada’s unions seek to remove barriers to employment for workers with disabilities appeared first on Canadian Labour Congress.