By Hassan Yussuff, as published in the Globe and Mail.   The holidays aren’t solely about gift-giving and spreading good cheer. Many workers find themselves having to walk a picket line around this time of year. Everywhere you look these days, teachers, public transit workers, railway and refinery workers seem to be involved in some kind of job action as…

In the CLC’s latest Labour Market Snapshot, analysis shows that Canada’s strong job numbers mask the reality of struggling young workers.   While unemployment rates continue to fall overall, many Canadians aged 15-29 are staying in school or giving up looking for work altogether. In particular, the number of people aged 25 to 29 who are not in employment, education,…

How is Canada’s economy really doing?  The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) provides a detailed quarterly analysis of select labour market indicators and what it means for Canada’s workers. In our spring snapshot, the CLC discovers that while job growth in Canada is strong, garnering laudatory headlines, there is a hidden story. While the unemployment rate hovered near 40-year lows, the…

On August 5, 1940, the federal government passed the Unemployment Insurance Act, establishing a fundamental pillar of Canada’s social safety net. Years of political pressure from unions, social groups and the CCF (which became the NDP) forced the Liberal government to take action, even though the constitution had to be amended. More than 75 years later, the program has been…

On July 1, 1935 thousands of people were on the streets of Regina, not to mark their country’s birthday, but to support a group of workers who were protesting against high unemployment, income insecurity and unfair working conditions. When the RCMP charged in to break things up, it caused the biggest riot in Canadian history (so far). The “On To…