Canada’s unions encourage donations to local food banks to mark Thanksgiving
October 6, 2020
Like so many other occasions, Thanksgiving won’t be the same this year due to COVID-19. Rates of COVID-19 are rising again, and many people in Canada will mark the holiday with fewer people around the table. What is not on the table will also be a source of anxiety and trepidation as growing numbers of individuals and families struggle with…
Canada’s unions call for recognition of the importance of domestic workers
June 16, 2020
Canada’s unions are marking International Domestic Workers Day by calling on the federal government to work with the provinces and territories to ratify ILO Convention 189 and ensure labour legislation recognizes and protects domestic workers. “It is important that we recognize the significant economic contribution of domestic work – work performed in or for a household or households – as…
Canada’s unions call for targeted support for persons with disabilities
June 1, 2020
The Canadian Labour Congress is calling on the federal government to increase financial supports and targeted employment strategies for persons with disabilities as a key aspect of Canada’s economic recovery plan. Persons with disabilities – especially those living at the intersections of multiple marginalized identities – face high unemployment rates and high levels of poverty and need additional support during…
Protect the women who make our clothes: Canada’s unions and civil society organizations call for action
April 24, 2020
Seven years after the tragic Rana Plaza building collapse, Bangladesh garment sector workers now confront even more risk and vulnerability in the fight against COVID-19. Canada’s unions and civil society organizations are calling for immediate relief for workers and protection of rights in global supply chains. The coalition says that concerns for workers cannot stop at Canada’s borders and the…
Canada’s unions mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities
December 3, 2019
Over half a million Canadians with disabilities are ready and able to work but can’t because of barriers to employment and training. To mark the 27th anniversary of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD), Canada’s unions are expressing support for the My Canada Includes Me campaign, which aims to support employment for Canadians with disabilities. “The Canadian Labour…
Unions mark Gender Equality Week with election demands
September 22, 2019
Canada’s unions are marking Gender Equality Week 2019 by calling on federal political parties to commit to creating a fair Canada for everyone. “Gender Equality Week was created to celebrate recent gains while reflecting on the work that needs to be done to improve gender equality and women’s rights across Canada,” said Marie Clarke Walker, Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Labour…
Why Canada’s unions are highlighting environmental racism during Black History Month
February 6, 2019
Environmental racism is the development and implementation of environmental policy on issues such as toxic waste disposal sites, pollution, and urban decay in areas with a significant ethnic or racial population. Believe it or not, Canada is not immune to these policies. This Black History Month, Canada’s unions say there can be no environmental justice without racial justice: addressing anti-Black…
Everyone deserves a fair chance to succeed and contribute. Economic and social barriers can prevent people from reaching their fullest potential. Working together, we can help to remove those barriers.
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…
Industrial workers of the world (iww) declared illegal in Canada
September 24, 2018
On September 24, 1918, the Canadian government made membership in the Industrial Workers of the World illegal. The maximum sentence for membership in the IWW was five years to be served in one of 24 internment camps. War brings out the worst in people and part of the propaganda of government in war time is to play on fear; fear of the…