Welcome progress in first 100 days – but much work to do in next 100 weeks
February 2, 2022
Bruske: Government and parliament must roll up their sleeves and get down to work OTTAWA––As we mark the first 100 days of this government tomorrow, Canada’s unions welcome progress made on a number of important issues. But with families reeling from rising prices and the pandemic still running through our communities, too many people are being left without help when…
Parliament must work with urgency on helping families
January 27, 2022
Bea Bruske: With care systems at a crisis point, runaway costs and a broken social safety net, MPs must get to work on solutions that help families now OTTAWA – While the pandemic rolls on with new disruptions, Canada’s unions are urging Members of Parliament to get down to work on helping struggling families when the House of Commons resumes sitting…
By Bea Bruske I think almost everyone can agree 2021 was a rough year. The pandemic we hoped was ending now rolls on with new variants and new disruptions. But in 2021 we also saw some hopeful signs of what’s possible when people work together in common cause. Workers with newfound confidence demanding better. People seeking out jobs that offered…
More needed to help Canadians amid devastating Omicron wave Bea Bruske, president of the Canadian Labour Congress, is available to speak to media today about the federal government’s Lockdown Benefit and the effect restrictions and business closures are having on workers and their families. In advance of the government’s announcement on December 22, 2021, Bruske said: “Canada’s unions are profoundly…
Statement of the CLC and provincial and territorial federations of labour in response to the Ontario Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee Report
December 20, 2021
The Canadian Labour Congress and Canada’s provincial and territorial federations of labour unanimously reject the recommendations of the report of the Ontario’s Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee (OWRAC) that would enshrine second-class status for gig workers. We believe every worker deserves the same high standard of protection under the law. Employers have long used excuses to misclassify their employees as independent…
Canada’s unions calling for greater protections and supports for migrant workers
December 17, 2021
Canada’s unions are marking International Migrants Day by calling for improved conditions for migrant workers in this country, particularly in the face of the ongoing climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. The recent state of emergency in British Columbia (BC) is the latest example of the clear and increasingly disastrous impacts of our global climate crisis. Communities across the province…
Canada’s unions welcome progress for seniors, students and First Nations children in fall economic update
December 14, 2021
Bruske: Canada’s unions happy to see support but disappointed unemployed workers and their families left behind OTTAWA – Canada’s unions welcomed today’s commitments to help low-income seniors and students hurting from their pandemic benefits being clawed back and support long-overdue compensation for children who suffered under Canada’s First Nations child welfare system. But the Canadian Labour Congress added unions were…
Canada’s unions: Use fiscal update to reverse seniors’ clawbacks and emergency help for workers
December 9, 2021
Bruske: Parliament must act swiftly to help low-income seniors, the 1.2 million unemployed and the 630K working Canadians who want full-time work but can’t find it With low-income seniors and unemployed workers being left behind, Canada’s unions are demanding the upcoming Economic and Fiscal Update be more than an accounting exercise but instead include a course correction on key issues. “The most vital thing about a country’s…
MPs must listen to workers and take action on a fair recovery that makes life more affordable
November 29, 2021
Canada’s unions are making sure Members of Parliament hear from workers, as they get down to work this week. The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) is launching Action Week, where workers from across Canada will be directly engaging with MPs about their priorities. “Workers are raising their voices to make sure our elected representatives hear, loud and clear, about the need…
New worker lockdown benefit fails to benefit workers
November 25, 2021
Liberals miss the mark with new legislation, more needed to help Canadians Canada’s unions are disappointed in the federal government’s proposed legislation, tabled in parliament Wednesday, saying it will only entrench greater inequities and leave vulnerable and marginalized workers behind. “This bill has been conceived so narrowly, it’s not a pivot, it pulls the rug right out from under struggling…