Canada’s unions are calling for urgent fiscal measures to respond to COVID-19
March 16, 2020
Canada’s unions are calling on all levels of government to provide adequate supports for workers and their families as the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic reverberate in communities and throughout the economy. “We continue to share our recommendations with the federal government as this situation progresses. While there has been an important move in easing measures around Employment Insurance (EI)…
Business and Labour come together to mitigate COVID-19 risks
March 13, 2020
OTTAWA – The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) issued the following joint statement today in response to the COVID-19 pandemic: “The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the CLC are uniting our response efforts to ensure all appropriate measures are put in place to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 for Canada’s employers and employees. “Canada’s economy,…
Canada’s unions stand with locked out steelworkers in Quebec
June 20, 2019
The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) fully supports the United Steelworkers (USW) complaint against the Government of Quebec for violating international labour laws and severely impeding the rights of workers. One thousand members of USW have been locked out of their workplace at an aluminum smelter in Bécancour, Quebec for the past 17 months. Over the spring of 2019, Quebec’s Premier François…
Canada’s unions disappointed that new Ombudsperson has been appointed without promised powers
April 8, 2019
Canada’s unions are disappointed that the long-awaited appointment of a Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) has not been accompanied by the promised power to investigate abuses and redress the harm caused by Canadian companies operating abroad. In January 2018, the federal government publicly committed to creating an independent ombudsperson’s office with the power to order those under investigation to…
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Government must enact viable solutions to end child labour
October 16, 2018
On Monday, the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE) tabled the report “A Call to Action: Ending the Use of All Forms of Child Labour in Supply Chains.” This report follows the Subcommittee on International Human Rights’ (SDIR) study on Child Labour and Modern Day Slavery. “The inexcusable use of child labour and slavery in the operations…
Labour leader’s murder triggers Canada’s first general strike
July 27, 2018
On July 27, 1918, Albert “Ginger” Goodwin, a well-known BC coalminer, pacifist and advocate for better working conditions in Canada’s mining sector, was hunted down and killed by a police officer. News of his death, which many believed were the result of his union activism, sparked Canada’s first General Strike as workers in Vancouver put down their tools and protested…
On May 9, 1992, just eight months after opening with federal and provincial government support, an underground methane explosion killed all 26 miners working in the Westray coal mine. An official inquiry into the disaster discovered profound “stupidity and neglect” on the part of the owners, but all attempts to prosecute the company and its officials failed. It took 11…
Remembering Rana Plaza: Canadian corporations must do more
April 23, 2018
Canada’s unions are marking the fifth anniversary of the Rana Plaza disaster by urging Canadian companies to commit to protecting and promoting the human rights of textile workers. On April 24, 2013, over one thousand garment workers were killed or injured when the Rana Plaza factory collapsed. Investigations showed that working conditions in the building did not meet safety standards.…
Unions welcome announcement on federal human rights ombudsperson
January 17, 2018
Canada’s unions are welcoming the federal government’s announcement that it will appoint an ombudsperson to ensure Canadian corporations respect their human rights obligations abroad. The new position, formally titled the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE), was announced today by François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of International Trade. The ombudsperson will be mandated to investigate allegations of wrongdoing by Canadian mining, energy, and…