Reject corporate gaslighting and deliver help for people in Budget 2024
March 25, 2024
By Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress as published in iPolitics We hear a familiar call coming from wealthy interests – joining forces once again with Conservatives – banging the drum for more corporate tax giveaways and deeper cuts to government spending in the upcoming Budget. Bay Street analysts and bank lobbyists loudly lament Canada’s “tumbling productivity”, sneeringly spreading blame…
Canada’s unions: Negligent employers on notice with 3-year prison sentence
September 14, 2023
In a direct message to employers who fail to ensure the health and safety of workers, a supervisor has been handed a three-year prison sentence for his failure to follow the law. In June of this year, the Court of King’s Bench found Jason King of New Brunswick-based Springhill Construction guilty of criminal negligence – “wonton and reckless disregard” –…
Never again: Canada’s unions mark 10 years since the Rana Plaza factory collapse
April 24, 2023
On April 24, workers in Bangladesh and across the globe will gather to mark the anniversary of the Rana Plaza garment factory collapse and mourn the loss of the more than 1,100 workers who were killed. Over 2,500 workers and their families continue to live with the aftermath of serious injuries sustained in one of the world’s worst industrial disasters.…
Unions pave path to the middle class for millions of Canadians
September 5, 2022
Bruske: Growing momentum for workers to demand better OTTAWA–Canada’s unions are marking Labour Day by celebrating the hard-fought gains of the labour movement and bringing workers, their families and allies together in solidarity, united in their commitment to the important work ahead. “The collective power of workers and our long fight for fairness has delivered the forty-hour work week, pensions,…
Canada’s unions: Urgent action needed to help families through the inflation crisis
June 16, 2022
OTTAWA – Day-to-day prices on essentials are surging, interest rates soaring and rents are reaching record levels. Meanwhile, wages are still lagging far behind inflation. Canada’s unions are urging Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland to announce new measures today to make sure millions of vulnerable workers and their families aren’t left behind by the worsening inflation…
Canada’s unions welcome cross-party collaboration on the Pension Protection Act – Bill C-228
June 14, 2022
OTTAWA – Canada’s unions welcome the cross-party collaboration of New Democrat, Bloc and Conservative MPs, who are moving forward key legislation to put workers at the front-of-the-line and protect their pensions when it comes to commercial bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings. “Pensions are a deferred pay cheque. Workers have put in their hours, their hard work, and have earned those pensions.…
Building a low-wage economy with stomach-churning greed
April 26, 2022
Bruske: Minimum wage employees being replaced by offshore workers making $3.75 an hour will hurt workers everywhere OTTAWA –– Replacing frontline workers with exploited offshore workers, as the restaurant chain Freshii is now doing, moves us towards a low-wage economy that weakens our communities and exploits workers, according to Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “This is about replacing…
Making Global Supply Chains Safe for Workers: Nine Years after the Rana Plaza Collapse
April 24, 2022
April 24th marks the anniversary of one of the world’s worst and avoidable industrial accidents. Rana Plaza, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, was home to garment factories supplying international garment brands. When it collapsed, more than 1,100 garment workers were killed and another 2,500 workers were seriously injured. This tragedy has drawn global attention to the exploitation and dangerous health and safety conditions…
Government must put the brakes on Bay St. and prevent windfall pandemic payouts
November 3, 2021
OTTAWA – An upcoming announcement from Canada’s banking regulator has the financial sector salivating at the prospect of gargantuan payouts. Analysts predict that the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) will announce this week that they will relax a ban on dividends and share buybacks. “The banks now want to reward themselves and investors with windfall gains that…