Better Pay and Benefits Archives | Canadian Labour Congress

Federal government should fast-track Canada Disability Benefit implementation

rchaaraoui — Thu, 02 Dec 2021 13:45:50 +0000

Canada’s unions are marking December 3 – the International Day of Persons with Disabilities – by joining workers and advocates across the county in calling on the federal government to fast-track the design and implementation of the Canada Disability Benefit.

“For years, the disability community has been sounding the alarm on the urgent need for improvements and reforms to Canada’s patchwork system of disability benefits,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “People continue to fall through the cracks due to the inadequacy of current programs and income supports, and also because of barriers to both eligibility and accessing benefits.”

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities aims to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities and to increase awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in every aspect of political, social, economic, and cultural life.

COVID-19 further exacerbated barriers and challenges, with Statistics Canada reporting that more than one-third of people with long-term conditions or disabilities experienced a temporary or permanent job loss or reduced hours during the pandemic. 61% of those surveyed reported a major or moderate impact from COVID-19 on at least one financial obligation or essential need.

Disability-led groups and allies are calling on the government to centre the needs of people with disabilities in the country’s pandemic recovery plans by working closely with people with disabilities to expedite the development and implementation of the Canada Disability Benefit and put an end to disability poverty.

“We must redouble our efforts to create an inclusive and accessible society, where all people have the means to live with dignity,” said Bruske. “A new Canada Disability Benefit would be a game-changer for people with disabilities and their families. We must also improve employment security and accessibility at work, and make care services more accessible so people with disabilities can fully participate in the labour force.”

Join the call to fast-track the design and implementation of the Canada Disability Benefit by signing this parliamentary petition:

https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-3656

Learn more about disability rights at work:

https://canadianlabour.ca/doing-things-differently-guide/

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Canada’s unions are warning federal government of looming ‘benefits cliff’

rchaaraoui — Thu, 18 Feb 2021 16:18:39 +0000

Canada’s unions are calling on the federal government to extend income support for unemployed workers until at least the end of 2021 or they will soon face a ‘benefits cliff’.

The numbers of workers who are currently facing the prospect of an end to their benefits this March are staggering:

844,000 workers were receiving the Canada Recovery Benefit in late January 2021;
129,000 workers were receiving the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit in late January 2021;
Over 2.3 million people are receiving Employment Insurance benefits in February 2021.

“These workers need to know what happens next as they continue to face economic hardship and uncertainty,” said Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “This pandemic is not ending anytime soon. We need the federal government to plan for the long-term and provide support for workers whose jobs have disappeared.”

Canada’s economy saw higher than expected job losses at the end of 2020 and another large drop in employment in January, with 213,000 jobs lost. Women and low-wage, racialized workers in precarious employment have been hit the hardest.

“It will be some time before Canada returns to full employment. The federal government must act now to ensure workers aren’t left struggling to put food on the table and cover their essential needs,” said Yussuff.

The federal government has already promised much-needed changes to Canada’s EI system. Read CLC’s recommendations for EI reform here.

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Canada’s unions encouraged by EI reforms

Tanya — Thu, 20 Aug 2020 20:22:22 +0000

OTTAWA – The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) welcomes today’s federal government announcement that it will extend the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), introduce much needed reforms to Employment Insurance (EI) to provide better protections for the country’s unemployed workers including the introduction of a minimum floor on benefits, and provide 10 paid sick days.

Millions of people have been relying on the CERB for financial support after losing their jobs because of the pandemic. The benefit was set to terminate but will now be extended for another month.

In the meantime, the temporary changes to EI will support those who still need help once the CERB expires and who wouldn’t otherwise be eligible under previous rules.

“Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough are clearly listening to the palpable fears of unemployed workers and are ensuring support for the hardest hit. Today’s extension of the CERB and the various changes to EI are going to provide a lifeline for people who are worried about how they will make ends meet,” said CLC President, Hassan Yussuff. “As much as people want to get back to work, many jobs are still not there. Today’s announcement will be a huge relief for workers and their families who deserve to live in dignity.”

Today’s reforms include:

a new stand-alone unemployment benefit of $400 for contract, self-employed, freelance and gig-economy workers that is modelled on CERB, and outside EI;
a rule that effectively lowers the eligibility threshold for maternity/parental benefits from 600 hours to 120 hours of insurable earnings;
a two-week flat-rate paid sick leave benefit.

“Canada’s unions have long called for paid sick leave. With this new benefit, workers can return to work with confidence knowing they can take time off without fear of lost pay or of losing their job,” says Yussuff.

“Today’s temporary reforms should help set the stage for a future permanent overhaul of EI that has been long overdue. That overhaul should include changes that would see employers who currently avoid paying EI premiums by claiming their workers are independent contractors be compelled to pay into EI programs.”

Last month, CLC released its own recommendations for EI reform, read more here.

To arrange an interview, please contact:
CLC Media Relations
media@clcctc.ca
613-526-742

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Canada’s unions welcome extension of income supports

Tanya — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 20:16:47 +0000

OTTAWA – Canada’s unions welcome the expansion of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), which will come as a relief to the millions of Canadians who can’t yet return to work.

“This is very good news for the millions of Canadians who still don’t have a job they can go back to and were growing concerned about paying their bills,” said Canadian Labour Congress President Hassan Yussuff. “The extension will allow families to continue paying their rent or mortgage and buying groceries.”

The CERB was originally scheduled to end within the next few weeks, leaving many Canadians who lost work due to COVID-19 without work or income support. The new extension to the end of August will allow these workers some peace of mind while waiting for the economy to further re-open.

“We look forward to hearing more details about this extension, as we continue with a safe and steady recovery,” said Yussuff. “We will continue checking in with workers across the country who want to be working but can’t yet. We will continue to advocate on their behalf at the federal level to ensure support stays in place as long as necessary.”

Many businesses are closing or evolving because of the COVID-19 crisis, meaning a lot still hangs in the balance in terms of rebuilding the economy and increasing employment levels. Canada’s unions will continue to be a voice for all workers as we survey the new landscape and pave the way forward.

For more information:
CLC Media Relations
media@clcctc.ca
613-526-7426

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Canada’s unions mark May Day by launching campaign to advocate for frontline heroes

Tanya — Fri, 01 May 2020 17:10:06 +0000

Canada’s unions are marking International Workers’ Day this year by launching a new campaign to bring attention to the vital contributions of essential workers and to advocate for better treatment.

“There are 4.9 million workers across the country who have been deemed essential, and many of them have been struggling to make a decent living for years,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff. “The current pandemic has shown that these workers are the backbone of our society. Yet, society has failed to value them adequately, which is reflected through inadequate wages, the lack of supports and the precarious nature of temporary, part-time employment. That must end now.”

Since the start of the public health crisis, Canada’s unions have brought attention to the issues workers have been facing, including a lack of paid sick leave, the low wages of many frontline workers, and the lack of proper protective equipment and inadequate safety measures across the country.

The campaign is titled; “Heroes Deserve Better” and it will put a spotlight on the struggles frontline workers are facing, while at the same time giving Canadians a way to show gratitude for the critical services these workers provide.

“Heroes deserve paid sick leave and heroes deserve a living wage. They deserve jobs with benefits and proper health and safety measures,” said Yussuff. “Canada’s unions will ensure that they are not forgotten in the recovery.”

The online campaign launches today, May Day. Frontline workers are invited to share their experiences and to express what they hope happens as the crisis goes on, and once it is over.

Canadians across the country are also invited to share stories of a frontline worker they know and would want to see profiled in this special series. Share a story here.

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Equal Pay Day: Recognizing the Value of Women’s Work

Tanya — Thu, 02 Apr 2020 18:18:34 +0000

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 in twelve. We mark Equal Pay Day to draw attention to the continued realities of wage discrimination and gender inequality in our country,” said Marie Clarke Walker, Secretary Treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress. “This year we must also recognize the gendered impact the COVID-19 crisis will have. The pandemic has exposed the lack of concrete protections for workers, especially for workers in sectors where women are often employed, and for women who work in low-wage and precarious jobs.”

The pandemic has demonstrated how important the work traditionally performed by women is to the maintenance of healthy and safe communities. Many undervalued workers have now been deemed essential, but these workers are still underpaid. Their work is often invisible and unrecognized, marked with poor working conditions, exposure to violence and harassment and other health and safety risks, limited job security and access to benefits, including paid sick leave.

“These workers are putting themselves and their families at risk so the rest of us can stay home to slow the spread of COVID-19,” said Clarke Walker. “Not only do these workers deserve higher wages, they should have predictable hours and job security, paid sick days and emergency leave, access to the equipment to do their job safely, support to meet their child care needs, and access to Employment Insurance and health benefits.”
“It’s time to usher in a new normal for our most vulnerable—and valuable—workers.”

According to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 13 percent of all working women in Canada are at risk of layoff, compared to nine percent of working men. Low-wage workers, who are disproportionately women, are most at risk.

Canada’s unions say that this is a time for bold, feminist action to recognize the value of women’s work and to end wage discrimination. Canada must make women’s economic justice a priority in the COVID-19 response and in the plan for recovery.

“This crisis has exposed who falls through the gaps in our system. The government has taken an important step with the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, but much more needs to be done to ensure that we leave no one behind as we respond to COVID-19. Every level of government must apply a gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) to how it’s responding to this crisis,” said Clarke Walker.

Join the cross-country Equal Pay Day Virtual Rally on April 4 at 1:00 p.m. by registering here: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/9119266283687928587

To learn more about Equal Pay Day, go to the Ontario Equal Pay Coalition website.

Click to access the CLC COVID-19 Resource Centre.

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Investing in care for gender equality

Mon, 07 Oct 2019 11:00:36 +0000

Today, on the twelfth annual World Day for Decent Work, Canada’s unions are calling for a federal task force on care work and care jobs in Canada.

The World Day for Decent Work is a global day of action for trade unions around the world. The theme for 2019, Investing in care for gender equality, recognizes that work in the care sector remains significantly undervalued, despite a growing demand.

The majority of workers who provide care for children, sick or elderly adults or people with disabilities are women. Many care workers are racialized, new to Canada, or working here temporarily.

Canada’s low investment in care, with the expectation that women will care for loved ones, unpaid, is a huge barrier to increasing women’s workforce participation, to tackling the gender pay gap and to achieving equality between women and men at work and in society.

Care work is characterized by poor pay and bad working conditions. These jobs are often precarious, offer little to no benefits or job security, involve long hours and heavy, challenging workloads.

Workers in the care sector experience astonishingly high rates of violence and harassment, including physical and sexual violence. Many care jobs are informal, leaving workers without the protection of employment or health and safety legislation, access to employment insurance or CPP.

A task force on care work would:

Examine paid and unpaid care work;
Develop a federal strategy to meet the increasing demands for care;
Reduce and redistribute women’s unpaid care work by improving access to public care services; and
Create a labour market strategy for care jobs.

Investing in the care economy by providing universal and affordable access to care services would double down on the benefits to gender equality in Canada – by creating good jobs for women with fair compensation and safe, decent working conditions, and by making it possible for more women to get a decent job and support their families.

Without a significant investment in our already-stretched public care services, women will most likely be left to pick up the slack.

It’s time to build and grow the care sector and promote decent work for care workers.

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This Collective Bargaining Rights Day, Unions Celebrate Wins for All Workers

Fri, 07 Jun 2019 18:21:27 +0000

Canada’s unions are recognizing June 8 as Collective Bargaining Rights Day by celebrating the labour movement’s long and proud history of winning important gains at the bargaining table, a legacy that improves the economic realities for all Canadian workers and their families.

“Collective bargaining allows working people to take part in fundamental decisions affecting their lives and, through collective action, improve conditions and prospects for their families, instead of forcing a race to the bottom,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff. “All workers should be able to exercise the fundamental right to a collective voice in their workplace.”

Collective bargaining allows working people to come together through labour unions to have a say on wages and working conditions, providing a counterbalance to corporate power. Through collective bargaining, working people in unions have negotiated higher wages, better benefits and safer workplaces. It is also the best means for raising wages and conditions for all workers in Canada.

The freedom to form and join a union is core to the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights and is an “enabling” right—a fundamental right that ensures the ability to protect other rights. Canada ratified the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise in 1972, and in 2017, Canada ratified ILO Convention 98 recognizing the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining.

However, one of most significant gains came in 2015 when Canada’s highest court fully recognized labour rights in Canada through two judgements that have been broadly interpreted to mean that collective bargaining is constitutionally protected by the Charter guarantee of freedom of association. Through its rulings, the Supreme Court of Canada told Canadians, employers and government not only that the right to collective bargaining belongs among the fundamental freedoms of Canadians, but that the ability to form independent associations for the purposes of free collective bargaining, backed by power of the strike, is a fundamental good in Canadian democracy and society.

Today, the overwhelming majority of Canadian workers have the legal right to collective bargaining.

“Beyond union members, all workers in Canada benefit from gains originally won by unions at the bargaining table, that were later adopted in labour legislation,” said Yussuff. “Minimum wage, holiday pay, maternity leave, and overtime premiums were first negotiated by unions, as were workplace health and safety regulations. From the bargaining table, these became law and now these gains lift the standard for all Canadian workers.”

In recent years, Canada’s unions have continued to win significant victories that improve the livelihoods of all workers, through an historic expansion of the Canada Pension Plan, a national ban on asbestos, paid domestic violence leave, and improvements to employment standards and labour laws across the country. The Canadian Labour Congress’ current campaign for a universal pharmacare plan would deliver prescription medication to everyone in Canada, regardless of their income, age or where they work or live.

“Empowered by the right to collectively bargain, unions continue to fight for the intrinsic rights of working people that restore the balance of economic power in our country,” said Yussuff. “Celebrating Collective Bargaining Day is a way to honour often-overlooked and misunderstood laws that support our core Canadian values of equality, cooperation, and fairness.”

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The poem that inspired a movement

admin — Sat, 01 Dec 2018 20:13:22 +0000

On December 1, 1911, The American Magazine published a poem with the title “Bread and Roses” for the very first time. Over the next few years, it would become an anthem of the trade union movement, linked to the struggle for social justice and equality.

Now a favourite anthem of the labour movement around the world, James Oppenheim was inspired to write the poem by a slogan “Bread for all, and Roses, too”. When his poem was published again in 1912, the slogan was attributed to women trade unionists – and the association stuck.

Oppenheim’s poem was also associated with the 1912 Lawrence textile strike, often referred to as the “Bread and Roses” strike. Led by immigrant women workers, the strike developed new tactics that have become standard procedures in labour disputes, among them the moving picket line to get around loitering charges.

It received a new lease on life with the resurgence of the women’s movement in the late 1960s and the interest in the role played by women in trade union history. In 1974, Mimi Fariña composed the now familiar tune that has become a standard for women in the labour movement.

In Canada, the slogan was reborn as the theme of the “Bread and Roses March” and the “World March of Women” that it inspired.

The first Bread and Roses March, an initiative of the Fédération des femmes du Québec, began on 26 May 1995. Over the course of 10 days, more than 800 Québécoise demonstrators set off from Montréal, Longueuil and Rivière-du-Loup and converged on Québec City with nine demands of the government to combat poverty.

The theme song of the march, Du pain et des roses, composed by Hélène Pedneault and Marie-Claire Séguin remains an anthem of the labour movements of Quebec and Canada.
BREAD AND ROSES

As we go marching, marching, in the beauty of the day
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts gray
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses
For the people hear us singing, bread and roses, bread and roses.

As we come marching, marching, we battle too, for men,
For they are in the struggle and together we shall win.
Our days shall not be sweated from birth until life closes,
Hearts starve as well as bodies, give us bread, but give us roses.

As we come marching, marching, un-numbered women dead
Go crying through our singing their ancient call for bread,
Small art and love and beauty their trudging spirits knew
Yes, it is bread we. fight for, but we fight for roses, too.

As we go marching, marching, we’re standing proud and tall.
The rising of the women means the rising of us all.
No more the drudge and idler, ten that toil where one reposes,
But a sharing of life’s glories, bread and roses, bread and roses.

—–

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Striking workers shot and killed while marching with their families

admin — Sat, 29 Sep 2018 18:57:18 +0000

On September 29, 1931, coal miners from nearby Bienfait gathered with their families, along with several hundred other miners and their families, to parade through the streets of Estevan in order to draw attention to their strike. The RCMP confronted them, attempting to block and break up the procession, then opened fire on the crowd. Three miners were killed and many others were injured and arrested. The Black Tuesday Riot is remembered to this day as a pivotal moment in Saskatchewan’s labour history.

In 1931 the miners of Bienfait Saskatchewan faced down company, government and police when they went on strike to improve their working and living conditions. The miners had joined the Mine Workers’ Union of Canada that same year. The union was an affiliate of the Workers Unity League, a militant labour body founded by the Communist Party of Canada in 1929.

The miners wanted set daily working hours, better working conditions, the end of the company store monopoly, and a wage increase. The mining company refused to recognize either their union or their demands, so the workers went on strike on September 7.

To gain public support for their cause, the miners and their union organized a solidarity parade in the nearby town of Estevan. The mayor and town council quickly declared the march illegal and called in the RCMP to reinforce the local police.

On September 29, several hundred coal miners gathered, along with their families, for the parade. Waving the Union Jack and carrying banners that read “We will not work for starvation wages”, “We want houses, not piano boxes” and “Down with the company store”, they slowly drove from Bienfait into Estevan. They were met by a line of police, backed by the RCMP and a firetruck. Words were exchanged and a scuffle broke out. The police fired, at first to frighten the marchers, but they soon turned their weapons toward the crowd that included women and children. Within minutes, three of the striking miners were dead with more people injured.

The next morning 90 RCMP descended on the homes of the miners, arresting 13 strikers on charges of rioting. Others were arrested in the days that followed. A number of workers, including the leaders of the unions, were put on trial and sentenced to hard labour. The police who killed the three men were never charged.

The riot, police violence and murder of three men – Peter Markunas, Nick Nargan and Julian Gryshko – hardened public opinion and only grew support for the labour movement across the Prairies.

By October 6, the mine owners finally agreed to implement an eight-hour day, a minimum wage of $4 a day, reduce the rent for miners’ houses and end the company store monopoly – but they would not recognize the union (and didn’t until the Second World War).

Today, in the northwest corner of the Bienfait cemetery, there stands a single grave that holds the remains of the three murdered strikers. The tombstone reads “Least We Forget. Murdered in Estevan Sept 29 1931 by RCMP”. Over the years it has been vandalized by removing “RCMP” which was always repainted by those who remember their history.

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“There was a union maid, she never was afraid.”

admin — Fri, 15 Dec 2017 20:14:30 +0000

“In the dark days prior to and during the Great Depression of the thirties there appeared on the Canadian scene a young woman whose fiery spirit and love of humanity carried her to the forefront of the struggles of the men and women who were striving to find a way out of the darkness of poverty, unenlightenment, and despair.” **

_{**Above – an excerpt from She Never Was Afraid: The Biography of Annie Buller, by Louise Watson. Photo: Wikipedia.}

“Annie Buller, married name Guralnick, political activist, union organizer (b in Ukraine 9 Dec 1895; d at Toronto 19 Jan 1973). Her Jewish parents immigrated to Montréal when she was a child. During WWI she became active in the Socialist Youth Movement, and after studying Marxism at the Rand School of Social Sciences, New York, established the Montréal Labour College with Becky Buhay and Bella Gauld. She joined the Communist Party of Canada in 1922 and devoted herself to full-time party organizing and managing party publications.

“In the early 1920s she went to Cape Breton to organize mine workers. After returning to Toronto, where her son Jim was born, she organized for the communist-led Industrial Needle Trades Workers Union in the early 1930s. While serving on the IUNTW executive board, she helped lead a general strike of Toronto dressmakers in 1931. That same year, she organized support for coal miners in Estevan, Sask. After a riot in which 3 strikers were killed by the RCMP (see Estevan Coal Miners Strike, 1931), Buller was jailed. While working as a business manager for the communist paper The Western Clarion in 1939, she was again arrested and interned until 1942.

“After the war she concentrated on party organizing, managing party publications such as the Tribune and National Affairs. She also participated in the party’s National Women’s Commission and the Housewives’ Association campaign to roll back prices. She retired from full-time party work in the late 1950s but remained politically active until her death.”

Source: http://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/annie-buller/

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