“Our labour movement remains deeply committed to the fight for a barrier-free Canada that is truly accessible for everyone and all abilities. This includes drastically reducing the economic barriers disproportionately faced by persons with disabilities in our country,” said Lily Chang, Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress.

Currently, more than 1.5 million people with disabilities in Canada are living below the poverty line. Moreover, women with disabilities experience poverty at a higher rate (17.7%) than men with disabilities (15.7%); and people aged 65 and above with disabilities had higher poverty rates (18.8%) than people with disabilities aged 15 to 64 (15.9%).

The employment situation for persons with disabilities is not much better either. About 1/3 of people with disabilities looking for work are shut out of today’s labour force, and the employment outlook is most dire for racialized people with disabilities. Those who are employed report experiencing disproportionately high levels of harassment and violence in the workplace (75%), alongside an hourly wage gap that has widened from $1.91 in 2023 to $2.22 in 2024. This is a weekly wage gap of $115.20, or almost $6,000 per year!

“Disability rights and economic justice for people with disabilities across Canada have always been, and will always unequivocally be, workers’ issues,” said Chang.

Despite the welcome introduction of the Canada Disability Benefit earlier this year, the relatively low benefit amount of only $200 a month, restrictive eligibility criteria, separate application process, and the risk of provincial claw-backs have resulted in a benefit that does little to meaningfully address the enormous socio-economic barriers facing millions of persons with disabilities in this country.   

While the 2025 federal budget included a small $150 top-up and tax exemption, it still falls short of delivering real change for Canadians with disabilities. This is why the CLC will continue to work alongside disability rights and justice advocates across the country in demanding immediate action from our federal government to shape a better benefit that truly lifts people with disabilities out of poverty.

“Canada’s unions are holding this government accountable and demanding they fulfill their promises and human rights obligations to make the eradication of disability poverty a reality in this country,” said Chang.

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This award is named in honour of Carol McGregor, an outstanding disability rights activist, member of NUPGE and the CLC Disability Rights Working Group―and who was much loved by all those who worked with her. Carol passed away in 2006.

In 2025, the award recognizes the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Canada activist Stephannie Leach. 

Stephannie is an inspiring leader in our labour movement who has tirelessly advocated for the rights of workers with disabilities in Alberta and in the Northwest Territories. Stephannie’s leadership in this area spanned both her involvement in her workplace and in her union, UFCW Canada Local 401.

As an employee of Vision Loss Rehabilitation Alberta, and a vision impaired worker herself, Stephannie travelled across the province and in the Northwest Territories to provide education to remote and rural communities about vision loss and accessibility awareness, as well as education about guide dogs and service animals. She also trains people with vision impairment to work with their service animals, to access public transit, and to get around their own homes.

Stephannie serves on her local bargaining committee, and she is the health and safety representative for her union in northern Alberta. Thanks to her successful advocacy efforts, the company agreed to bereavement days for the loss of service animals. 

As a trailblazing advocate, she also took the initiative to translate the collective agreement into braille, the first of its kind at her union!

As a dedicated champion for disability rights and inclusion of people with disabilities in her union, in her workplace, and in her communities, Stephannie perfectly embodies the spirit of this award.  

Congratulations to Stephannie and thank you for your leadership and activism for disability rights and inclusion.

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National AccessAbility Week celebrates the valuable contributions of people with disabilities in Canada and highlights the actions needed to create an accessible Canada.

In 2020, the government announced its intention to implement the first of its kind, federal-level guaranteed monthly income supplement aimed at working-age people living with disabilities. But as rent and groceries continue to rise, the government recently announced that the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) will only be $200.00 per month (or just $6.66 per day). 

“After years of anticipation, we were profoundly disappointed at the announcement of the benefit. Along with our allies in the disability rights community, we were disheartened to learn that the amount would work out to a mere $6.66 per day, and that eligibility would be based on the inaccessible Disability Tax Credit,” said Lily Chang, Secretary-Treasurer of the CLC. “Accessibility isn’t possible without income security.”

The Disability Tax Credit (DTC) program currently excludes many individuals who face significant barriers to qualifying, meaning many people with disabilities who are currently in poverty would not get the benefit. 

22% of people in Canada identify as having a disability. Yet, they make up 41% of the population living in poverty. There are many contributors to high rates of poverty among people with disabilities, including inaccessible workplaces, high medical costs and meagre provincial supports. 

The purpose of the CDB is to “reduce poverty and to support the financial security of working-age persons with disabilities”. The Canada Disability Benefit Act acknowledges the additional costs associated with living with a disability, the challenges that people with disabilities face in employment, intersecting systems of oppression faced by people with disabilities and Canada’s international human rights obligations. The amount and eligibility fail to reflect the goals and realities underlying this legislation.

“We echo the demands of our disability justice allies: the government must invest more in the CDB by the Fall 2024 Economic Statement, broaden eligibility through the regulations, and fully review and reform the DTC program. The provincial and territorial governments must commit to not clawing back the CDB. As modest as it is, it will be worse if it’s deducted from any provincial benefits people receive,” said Chang. “People with disabilities cannot wait any longer; they need economic security now.” 

You can learn more about National AccessAbility Week here.

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“We have stood in solidarity with disability activists and organizations who have lobbied for this benefit for years. Today is a historic moment to celebrate these efforts and reaffirm labour’s support to lift the floor on disability poverty from coast to coast.” said Bea Bruske, President of the CLC. “This win belongs to all the disability rights and justice activists who fought so hard to get us here.”  

Bill C-22, the Canada Disability Benefit Act, was first promised in the September 2020 throne speech and proposed a new benefit program specifically targeting persons with disabilities in Canada. This benefit is to be distributed in addition to existing programs at the provincial and federal level that offer financial supports for persons with disabilities in Canada. 

Once implemented, the new benefit would be the first federal-level guaranteed monthly income supplement aimed at people living with disabilities of its kind in Canada. 

According to Statistics Canada, people with disabilities make up 41% of the low-income population in Canada, compared with 18% of the non-low-income population. Working aged people with severe disabilities face the highest rates of poverty in Canada. And while inflation has skyrocketed across the country, provincial disability benefits are not index-linked. This means people with disabilities who are already struggling to make ends meet and who face existing barriers to accessing the unique and often expensive supports they need, have been hit the hardest by Canada’s ongoing affordability crisis. 

“We look forward to continued solidarity and collaboration with the activists and organizations who have led these efforts to pass C-22, and to work with the government to ensure that the implementation of the new Canada Disability Benefit is well-resourced in the next budget,” said Lily Chang, Secretary-Treasurer of the CLC. 

For further updates on the implementation of the benefit, follow the continued advocacy efforts of organizations led by people with disabilities, like Disability Without Poverty and Inclusion Canada.  

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This week marks Mental Illness Awareness Week, which is aimed at raising awareness and increasing action in support of Canadians living with mental illness. More than two million Canadians have a mental health related disability and one in three Canadians will be impacted by mental illness in their lifetime.

According to a recent poll, 40 percent of Canadians reported feeling like they were at a mental health breaking point, while almost 60 percent said someone in their immediate circle of close friends, co-workers and family members has suffered a mental health crisis.

“People living with a mental illness must have access to social safety nets that will help them live in dignity and pursue decent work. Unions welcome the new disability benefits bill because we believe it is part of the solution to pull back the barriers that work against people with mental illness in our society,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC).

People with mental illness are disproportionately unemployed when compared to their counterparts in the labour market, and consequently, they are more susceptible to living below the poverty line. Even when they are employed, they are more likely to receive wages that are either at or below minimum wage. The Mental Health Commission of Canada found that up to 90 percent of people living with a serious mental illness are unemployed.

The Commission also found that a rising number of people with mental illness are transitioning to various federal, provincial, territorial and private income supports, a situation that has only gotten worse since the COVID-19 pandemic began. What’s worse: these income support programs have already been proven to provide insufficient and inconsistent financial resources that often deepen the economic disparities faced by people with disabilities in Canada compared to the general population.

“Unions across Canada will stand in solidarity with our coalition partners in the disability rights and disability justice movements demanding that this government live up to its promise to build a Canada without barriers. Fast tracking the disability benefits bill is a critical part of fulfilling that promise,” said Lily Chang, CLC Secretary-Treasurer. “Reducing disability poverty through the adoption of Bill C-22 is the right thing to do.”

The Canada Disability Benefit bill was first introduced in the throne speech of fall 2020. It was then reaffirmed in the 2021 mandate letter for Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough. Learn more about advocacy efforts to fast track the benefits bill from the National Disability Without Poverty Network.

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OTTAWA – Canada’s unions welcome today’s re-introduction of a bill to implement the Canada Disability Benefit by Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough.

“The Canada Disability Benefit will provide critical support for people living with disabilities. Designed properly, this benefit could lift hundreds of thousands of working-age people living with disabilities out of poverty,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “Our thanks to the many activists and advocates who have worked so hard for so long to make the Canada Disability Benefit a reality.”

Bruske explained that many people with disabilities live without economic security and face tremendous barriers to inclusion. Women, members of the 2SLGBTQI community, racialized people and Indigenous people living with disabilities and those living with severe disabilities are even more likely to be financially insecure.

“From barriers to employment to affordable housing to access to care, so many people living with disabilities face unacceptable barriers to economic security,” continued Bruske. “With rising costs making life even harder, we must make sure the bill is well designed and is a meaningful addition to existing federal, provincial and territorial supports, so help gets to those who need it.”

Bruske added that Canada’s unions will continue to work with the disability community to make sure this bill is a top priority for Parliament to get passed quickly and that, once implemented in each province and territory, leaves no one behind.  

“People living with disabilities deserve to live in dignity. Canada’s unions will continue to press MPs to get this bill passed as quickly as possible,” concluded Bruske. “We urge MPs to fast track this bill and work together to end disability poverty for good.”

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To arrange an interview, please contact:
CLC Media Relations
media@clcctc.ca
613-526-7426

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“It is past time that the Canada Disability Benefit be re-introduced in Parliament and fast-tracked into legislation,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “With COVID-19 still disrupting our lives and the cost of living sharply increasing, this legislation is critical to improving economic security and quality of life for persons with disabilities.”

First promised in the 2020 Speech from the Throne, Bill C-35, aimed to establish the Canada Disability Benefit. It was tabled in June 2021, but died on the Order Paper when the 2021 federal election was called.

Earlier this month, the federal NDP introduced a motion calling on the federal government to re-offer its proposed disability benefit. The motion passed unanimously in the House of Commons, putting pressure on the Liberal government to reintroduce Bill C-35.

While consultations are underway regarding the specifics of the benefit’s design, disability groups have been advocating for a fast-tracking of the legislation and drafting of the benefit to help address the critical and immediate needs of the disability community.

“The theme for this year’s NAAW is ‘Inclusive from the start’. Yet so many people with disabilities face tremendous barriers to inclusion – barriers to employment, to affordable, accessible and supportive housing, to access the care they need to live dignified lives. Many fall through the cracks of existing income support systems and as a result experience significant poverty and marginalization” said Lily Chang, CLC Secretary‑Treasurer. “A well-designed Canada Disability Benefit would help lift people out of poverty. Without it, meaningful inclusion is not possible.”

NAAW runs from May 29 to June 4. The week is an important opportunity to celebrate the contributions of people with disabilities, highlight the critical work being undertaken to eliminate barriers and strengthen calls for improved accessibility and greater disability inclusion.

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Email your MP to urge them to support and help fast-track the Canada Disability Benefit using Disability Without Poverty’s “Write Your MP” tool.

Check out Doing Things Differently: A Disability Rights At Work Handbook. The CLC resource includes a comprehensive guide on the duty to accommodate, a checklist for organizing accessible events and many more practical resources for supporting disability rights in our workplaces, in our unions and in our communities.

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On this day, the Canadian Labour Congress recognizes a union member with an award for their disability rights activism. The award is named in honour of Carol McGregor, an outstanding disability rights activist, member of BCGEU/NUPGE and the CLC Disability Rights Working Group, who was much loved by all those who worked with her. Carol passed away in 2006.

On the tenth anniversary of this award, the Canadian Labour Congress is pleased to announce Sheryl Burns as the 2021 recipient of the Carol McGregor CLC Disability Rights Award.

Sheryl became a union activist and CUPE member in 2005, working in Vancouver’s women’s shelters and as a legal advocate supporting survivors of abuse, including women with disabilities. She is now the President of CUPE Local 1936, representing social service workers throughout British Columbia’s Lower Mainland. In this role, she provides fierce advocacy to ensure the duty to accommodate is enforced for members who are permanently or temporarily disabled.

She is recognized for her outstanding leadership for persons with disabilities in Canada’s labour movement and tireless advocacy in the community. This includes fighting for and winning accommodations for workers, crucially preventing job loss, ensuring job gain, and significantly improving working conditions for workers with disabilities. Most recently, Sheryl led important work to ensure accommodations for workers struggling with mental health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sheryl has spoken on various panels and delivered numerous workshops on disability rights and decent work for people with disabilities and has pushed for important changes within CUPE and the broader labour movement, including improved accessibility provisions and increased representation of members with disabilities in leadership positions.

In the community, Sheryl holds a position on the Executive Board for Disability Alliance British Columbia and was previously a member of the City of Vancouver Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee. In these roles she worked on campaigns for improvements to emergency preparedness for persons with disabilities, a strengthened Guide and Assistance Dog Act, a push for more accessible transportation, and improvements to income assistance and housing for persons with disabilities, among other issues.

Sheryl is a General Vice-President on the CUPE BC Executive Board, has been the co-chair of the CUPE BC Persons with Disabilities Committee, and currently sits on the Executive Council of the BC Federation of Labour as the Persons with Disabilities Representative, a position she has held since 2014.

“Sheryl has been a powerful advocate for disability rights throughout her life, bringing her lived experience as a woman with a hearing disability to a multitude of spaces,” said nominators, Mark Hancock (National President, CUPE) and Charles Fleury (National Secretary-Treasurer, CUPE). “She has displayed incredible strength and courage in negotiating ableist barriers to achieve significant change and improvements for persons with disabilities in Canada.”

Congratulations, Sheryl!

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“For years, the disability community has been sounding the alarm on the urgent need for improvements and reforms to Canada’s patchwork system of disability benefits,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “People continue to fall through the cracks due to the inadequacy of current programs and income supports, and also because of barriers to both eligibility and accessing benefits.”

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities aims to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities and to increase awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in every aspect of political, social, economic, and cultural life.

COVID-19 further exacerbated barriers and challenges, with Statistics Canada reporting that more than one-third of people with long-term conditions or disabilities experienced a temporary or permanent job loss or reduced hours during the pandemic. 61% of those surveyed reported a major or moderate impact from COVID-19 on at least one financial obligation or essential need.

Disability-led groups and allies are calling on the government to centre the needs of people with disabilities in the country’s pandemic recovery plans by working closely with people with disabilities to expedite the development and implementation of the Canada Disability Benefit and put an end to disability poverty.

“We must redouble our efforts to create an inclusive and accessible society, where all people have the means to live with dignity,” said Bruske. “A new Canada Disability Benefit would be a game-changer for people with disabilities and their families. We must also improve employment security and accessibility at work, and make care services more accessible so people with disabilities can fully participate in the labour force.”

Join the call to fast-track the design and implementation of the Canada Disability Benefit by signing this parliamentary petition: 

https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-3656 

Learn more about disability rights at work:

https://canadianlabour.ca/doing-things-differently-guide/ 

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This award is named in honour of Carol McGregor, an outstanding disability rights activist, member of BCGEU/NUPGE and the CLC Disability Rights Working Group―and who was much loved by all those who worked with her. Carol passed away in 2006.

In 2020, the award recognized the lifetime achievements of Darryl Flasch, a member of the British Columbia Government and Services Employees Union (BCGEU/NUPGE). As an active trade unionist since 1990, Darryl has dedicated 30 years of his life to removing barriers and ensuring the inclusion of workers with disabilities in his workplace and in the labour movement. He also worked tirelessly to advocate for more tools and resources within his union, including accessibility audits, in order to build a labour movement and communities that are inclusive of all abilities.

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Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada’s unions have collaborated with disability rights coalitions like the Include Me Campaign, to highlight the unique challenges and barriers faced by persons with disabilities during this health crisis.

“We know that the current health crisis has intensified the discrimination and stigma towards workers with disabilities. Hard-won workplace accommodations are at risk when the office becomes virtual, and workers with disabilities are at a greater risk of being laid off or having their jobs furloughed,” said Larry Rousseau, CLC Executive Vice-President.

“It’s critical that we shine a light on the challenges faced by persons with disabilities during this pandemic, especially those whose experiences are amplified by multiple marginalized identities including women, Indigenous and racialized people, and those in the LGBTQ2SI community.”

Even before the pandemic, unemployment rates ranged between 35 per cent for people with ‘mild’ disabilities to 74 per cent for people with ‘severe’ disabilities. High levels of poverty and unemployment have only worsened for persons with disabilities in the midst of this crisis.

Meanwhile, the reliance on affordable housing, income and health care supports is greater than ever – programs for which funding and availability already vary greatly across the country.

The federal government’s throne speech earlier this fall highlighted many new and important initiatives to help address the disproportionate impacts of this crisis on persons with disabilities. This included a new Disability Inclusion Plan, which would feature:

• A new Canadian Disability Benefit modelled after the Guaranteed Income Supplement for seniors;
• A robust employment strategy for Canadians with disabilities; and
• A better process to determine eligibility for government disability programs and benefits.

“While we welcome the new disability inclusion strategy, we are also calling for the voices of workers with disabilities and their unions to be at the forefront,” added Rousseau.

“These discussions will guide the design and implementation of this strategy and must ensure that it adequately addresses the barriers to employment and economic security that workers with disabilities face.”

The federal government can help alleviate anxiety by investing in jobs and collaborating with unions on initiatives like a robust employment strategy for persons with disabilities, making long-term care part of public health care, supporting a child care strategy, and implementing national pharmacare.

Learn more about the CLC’s Forward Together campaign at canadianplan.ca.

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Participants will be calling on elected representatives to push for federal investments towards job creation, health care and child care, among other necessary programs. Over 200 meetings are scheduled.

“The pandemic continues to disrupt our lives in a myriad of ways. Our governments have an integral role in making sure that workers and their families get through this ongoing crisis,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff. “Workers know they have to advocate for solutions that centre their experiences and which address the systemic gaps this pandemic has revealed. Right now, the only way to do that is virtually and workers are stepping up in a significant way to do what it takes to be heard,” said Yussuff.

Canada’s unions are calling on the federal government to disaster-proof the economy.  This includes committing to shovel-ready projects that create stable, well-paying jobs, as well as investing in job training for workers, particularly those disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, including racialized workers, women, and people with disabilities. Unions are urging the government to start by implementing its promised $15 minimum wage in federally regulated workplaces.

The pandemic has also demonstrated the need for a more resilient and comprehensive public health care system. Canada’s unions have long called for the implementation of single-payer, universal pharmacare, particularly urgent now considering that millions of people in Canada have lost access to drug benefits and are struggling to pay for their prescription medications.

“There is no going back to business as usual,” said Yussuff. “On the contrary, we’ve managed to weather this pandemic better than some countries by working together and taking care of one another. MPs will be hearing directly from their own constituents this week on how they can continue to support working people and their families going forward.”

To arrange an interview, please contact:
CLC Media Relations
media@clcctc.ca
613-526-7426

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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 the COVID-19 crisis and after.

“The current health crisis has intensified the discrimination and stigma workers with disabilities were already facing,” said Larry Rousseau, Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “Hard-won workplace accommodations are at risk when the office becomes virtual, and workers with disabilities are at a greater risk of being laid off or having their jobs furloughed.”

The Canadian Labour Congress is marking National AccessAbility Week to shine a light on the challenges faced by persons with disabilities, and those whose experiences are amplified by multiple marginalized identities, including being a woman, Indigenous, racialized and 2SLGBTQI, et al.

Canada’s unions have joined with disability rights organizations in the Include Me coalition, calling for a number of priorities to protect the health and safety and provide care and support to persons with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The federal government has yet to announce specific targeted income supports for persons with disabilities to navigate their unique financial impact of this crisis.

Unemployment rates are between 35 per cent for people with ‘mild’ disabilities and 74 per cent for people with ‘severe’ disabilities. High levels of poverty and unemployment means more reliance on affordable housing, income and health care supports – programs whose funding and availability vary greatly across the country.

“We are working together to ensure that Canada’s response to this crisis leaves no one behind,” said Rousseau. “We need to see targeted income supports for persons with disabilities to address the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, and, in the longer-term, recovery planning must make accessibility and inclusion a core priority.”

For more information on on-going advocacy efforts from disability related organizations in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic, check out the Include Me coalition’s COVID-19 resource centre.

National AccessAbility Week was first introduced in 2019 after the implementation of the Accessible Canada Act, learn more about the history of the week here.

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The impact of COVID-19 on workplaces, communities and families across Canada is unprecedented. Many workers have lost their jobs or contracts, or have been recalled after layoffs. Other workers are on the front lines and putting their health and their families’ health at risk every day. Others are working remotely for the first time.

In the midst of all of this social distancing and the increased economic precarity felt throughout this crisis, workloads have now doubled or tripled for those caring for children, elders and persons with disabilities as schools, community centres and other planned daily activities cease to operate.

“Our lives have significantly changed as a result of this pandemic and this has already negatively impacted the mental health of many in workplaces across Canada,” explained Executive Vice-President Larry Rousseau. “It’s critical that workplaces are equipped with the resources and training necessary to provide accommodations and supports for mental health wellness of their workers.”

Even before the pandemic, mental illness accounted for about a third of all disability claims. With the added stressors of the current crisis, workers are feeling the negative impacts on their mental well-being even more than before.

Fighting for better mental health resources and supports can help to keep workers in their jobs and prevent mental illnesses from occurring in the first place. The Canadian Labour Congress offers a Mental Health at Work online portal. 

This online catalogue provides a series of resources, including how to bargain for better mental health supports in the workplace, geared towards workers and trade union activists who want to ensure their workplaces prioritize mental health outcomes for all.

“Mental Health Week is an opportunity for every workplace to recognize that better mental health care, an end to discrimination against people with mental illness and equitable work opportunities are human rights issues that must be prioritized.

“This week we want to say to workers who are struggling:  it’s okay to not be okay.  You are not alone.  Use the resources and get the help you need, and together we’ll get through this extraordinary challenge,” said Rousseau.

List of Useful Resources:

CLC Mental Health Resource Centre:
https://canadianlabour.ca/uncategorized/mental-health-resources/

Canadian Mental Health Association 
https://mentalhealthweek.ca/toolkit/

Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety: Free mental health e-courses
https://www.ccohs.ca/topics/wellness/mentalhealth/

National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace
https://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/English/what-we-do/workplace/national-standard

Kids help phone
https://kidshelpphone.ca/

Distress Centres
https://ca.edubirdie.com/blog/worldwide-and-canadian-crisis-centres

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Although there is still much we do not know about this tragedy, now the deadliest massacre in Canadian history, it has come to light that the killer began his shooting spree by assaulting his intimate partner.

Women’s shelters in Nova Scotia and across the country have called on the media and police to call the recent massacre what it is: an act of gender-based violence.

“We must acknowledge that these murders were rooted in misogyny,” said Marie Clarke Walker, Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress. “They are not ‘senseless,’ ‘random’ or ‘isolated’. They are part of the nationwide crisis of violence against women. It is the same crisis that sees a woman or girl killed every three days in this country.”

Research shows that in the majority of mass shootings there is a history of domestic violence. Misogyny was also at the root of Canada’s other deadliest killings: the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre in Montreal and the 2018 Toronto van attack.

While misogynist violence can touch any woman, some groups of women are impacted disproportionately: Indigenous women, young women, women with disabilities, and trans women and non-binary folk all experience higher rates of domestic violence.

Other groups of women face barriers to support and to accessing justice. Black and Indigenous women, refugees and migrant women, and trans women may be reluctant to seek the support of police or social services because these systems may expose them to other forms of structural violence and discrimination. Accessible services are difficult to find for deaf women and women with disabilities. Few such services exist in rural and remote communities.

“This pandemic, along with the public health recommendation to stay at home has put women further at risk,” said Clarke Walker. “Canada’s unions applaud governments’ efforts to ensure that shelters and other support providers have the resources they need to manage an increase in demand and to assist women whose homes are not safe.”

Over the last five years, the Canadian labour movement successfully fought for and won paid domestic violence leave both federally and in the vast majority of provinces and territories. Now, we must go further.

Canada needs a National Action Plan on Violence Against Women and Girls. A Plan would help plug the gaps in anti-violence services while establishing clear targets for progress and ensuring consistency across and within jurisdictions. Although the federal government has signaled its intent to develop a Plan, it needs to establish the funding and the process to see it through.

The federal government needs to step up and accelerate these efforts. Women and non-binary people – especially those who are marginalized – are literally dying while we wait.

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“Canada’s unions and workers with disabilities are gratified to see federal accessibility legislation implemented in this country,” said Larry Rousseau, Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). “We are extremely pleased to see the efforts of our allies in the disability rights movement finally realized.”

The introduction of national accessibility legislation is a key aspect of the provisions and mandates in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities for all signatory countries. Canada ratified the Convention in 2010.

Almost a decade later, the Congress joins advocates in the disability rights movement across the country as they celebrate the implementation of a national strategy and vision to better the lives of persons with disabilities in Canada.

Since the introduction of Bill C-81 in June 2018, the CLC has participated in numerous government consultations on the employment-related aspects of the legislation, calling for amendments to enshrine the role of unions and protect members’ bargaining rights. You can read our submission here.

 “Although we did not see all of our recommended amendments reflected in the legislation that was presented in the House of Commons for third reading, we remain committed to working with this government to develop regulations that protect the rights of workers with disabilities,” said Rousseau.

National AccessAbility Week is marked each year as the last week of May, and is an opportunity for all Canadians to recognize the efforts of the disability rights community, and celebrate the contributions of persons with disabilities. You can learn more about the origins of National AccessAbility Week here.

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Along with their allies in the disability rights movement, Canada’s unions recently welcomed the introduction of Bill C-81, the Accessible Canada Act. However, they would like to see more focused attention on the identification and removal of barriers to employment at workplaces across Canada.

“For decades, the disability rights community has advocated for the introduction of federal legislation on accessibility,” said CLC Executive Vice-President Larry Rousseau. “We are pleased to see the government deliver on its promise for this legislation, but they will need to go further to truly remove barriers for workers with disabilities.”

Given that the Act identifies “employment” as one of seven areas specified for the identification and removal of barriers, and the prevention of new barriers, the CLC has identified a number of amendments to improve the efficacy of the Act.

In particular, new workplaces standards on accessibility would be developed in the Act without any language that mandates the inclusion of unions or considers the important role of bargaining agents in the development of these standards. As such, the CLC is calling for amendments to the Act that:

• protect workers’ bargaining rights;
• establish clear enforcement mechanisms that support employer accountability and compliance; and finally
• integrate an intersectional framework throughout the Act that recognizes the diversity of identities and barriers of people with disabilities.

“We are committed to working with this government to adopt and implement an amended Act that sets an example for countries around the world,” said Rousseau. “This is our opportunity to put Canada on the map as a global accessibility leader.”

The CLC has also called for amendments that would ensure C-81 aligns with and enhances the application of other existing legislation, regulations, policies, programs and services. This includes ensuring consistency between the legislative application and treatment, standards and requirements of employers in C-81, and those in existing legislation, such as the Employment Equity Act.

You can read and share our full submission on the Accessible Canada Act here.

The International Day for Persons with Disabilities was first proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1992.

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The federal government announced this week that it was beginning consultations around signing the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The Optional Protocol would allow individuals in Canada who believe their rights under the Convention have been violated to register complaints with the United Nations.

Unions are also calling for these rights to be enshrined in Canadian legislation. The CLC recently participated in government consultations for new federal legislation on accessibility. Not surprisingly, employment was the top issue identified in these consultations.

“We would like this legislation to take a broad, rights-based approach that not only improves accessibility, but also promotes inclusion of persons with disabilities in all aspects of Canadian life,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff.

The CLC has a long history of advocating for Canadians living with disabilities and for injured workers, and of advocating for strong health and safety legislation and regulations that make all workers safer. Canada’s unions are also working to improve labour force access for Canadians with disabilities and injured workers.

Earlier this year, the UN reviewed Canada’s compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and made concrete recommendations for action, including the need for a policy on employment for persons with disabilities and strategies to ensure access to decent work.

“We are looking forward to the promised federal accessibility legislation,” said Yussuff. “We hope that it provides a clear path to address the many barriers to inclusion that people with disabilities and deaf and hard-of-hearing persons face,” he added.

This past May, delegates to the CLC triennial convention voted to establish the CLC’s priorities for the next three years. Those priorities include urging the federal government to make the disability tax credit refundable, review and revise the CPP disability program in order to increase access and benefit amounts, and extend the CPP disability drop-out provisions to the enhanced retirement benefit.

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What is “decent work”?

• Access for all workers to quality jobs, dignity, equality, and safe working conditions.

• Putting workers at the centre of development and giving them a voice in what they do.

This year’s global focus is on struggles to win living minimum wages and a pay raise for all workers.

The Canadian Labour Congress has outlined steps Canada needs to take in a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau, outlining several steps the federal government can take to ensure better access to decent work at home and abroad.

“We need federal leadership on decent work, not just so that we improve work for Canadians, but so we can set an example for other countries too,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff.

What our federal government can do

• Ensure the creation of high-quality jobs needed by millions of unemployed, underemployed, and precariously-employed workers in Canada.

• Promote and uphold collective bargaining rights at home and abroad.

• Restore the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, indexing it to wage growth, and bring back full employment as a primary policy target.

• Create public employment programs for regions and populations with high unemployment or a high concentration of low-wage workers. That should include job creation programs for youth, Indigenous and Northern communities, newcomers to Canada, Alberta and the Atlantic provinces;

• Commit to long-term funding for high-quality, public, universal, affordable child care;

• Adopt strong, proactive pay equity legislation incorporating the recommendations of the 2004 Pay Equity Task Force;

• Use all available tools to eliminate discrimination in hiring, promotion, and pay, including strengthening the Employment Equity Act and the Federal Contractors Program;

• Introduce paid sick leave and paid leave for victims of domestic violence for workers in the federal jurisdiction, and encourage provinces and territories to follow suit;

• End the systematic violation of migrant workers’ rights by abolishing tied work permits and implementing a proactive compliance assessment and enforcement regime;

• Promote fairness by tightening regulations on hours of work and scheduling;

• Increase staffing, training and resources for federal employment standards and health and safety inspectors; and

• Improve the Wage Earner Protection Program to better protect wages when employers go bankrupt or simply disappear.

Canada’s unions are also asking the federal government to promote decent work in global supply chains and the extractive sectors by:

• Appointing a human rights ombudsperson to investigate how Canadian companies’ foreign operations impact human rights;

• Introducing national due diligence legislation with a monitoring mechanism and an enforcement procedure for large companies.

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Unions were some of the earliest advocates for disability rights in the workplace, and embraced the CRPD for promoting the full participation of people with disabilities in all spheres of life. That means eliminating obstacles and barriers to accessibility, including stigma and discrimination.

In the 10 years since its adoption at the UN, the CRPD has been one of the most quickly ratified of all the international human rights treaties. Canada ratified the Convention in 2010. But how are we as a country doing at living up to its commitments?

The Canadian Labour Congress joined with disability rights organizations to evaluate Canada’s progress. Led by the Council of Canadians with Disabilities, this partnership will produce a shadow report on Canada’s implementation of CRPD and identify issues that Canada needs to address to ensure full disability rights.

“The CRPD is meant to ‘promote, protect and ensure the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities, and to promote respect for their inherent dignity’,” said CLC Executive Vice-President Marie Clarke Walker.

“We have come a long way in 10 years, but people with disabilities in Canada still experience systemic barriers, which result in increased poverty, unemployment, and isolation,” said Clarke Walker.

Clarke Walker noted that Canada has ratified CRPD but has not yet developed a clear plan for implementation. The shadow report will be submitted to the UN in February 2017 and then a delegation of civil society and union representatives will bring the issues directly to the CRPD committee in Geneva in April 2017.

Clarke Walker noted that Canada has ratified CRPD and is beginning the process of ratifying the Optional Protocol, which would allow individuals and groups to file disability rights complaints at the UN, and for the UN to launch investigations into disability rights violations in Canada. The CLC sees this as a positive step but would like to see this commitment strengthened with a concrete plan for implementation and monitoring, in order to prevent complaints needing to be filed in the first place.

The Canadian Labour Congress and several affiliated unions are also participating in a federal government consultation on accessibility legislation. The CLC is encouraging government to develop broad legislation connected with the implementation of the CRPD.

“A human rights framework would better address the range of systemic barriers affecting Canadians with disabilities, in areas like transportation, banking, voting, affordable housing, and post-secondary education,” Clarke Walker said.

Members of the public can also take part in the consultation through an online questionnaire or by mail, phone, email or TTY. Visit http://www.esdc.gc.ca/en/consultations/disability/legislation/index.page for contact information.

“Canada should be a disability rights leader. Together we can make that message heard,” Clarke Walker concluded.

December 3 is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. 

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• More than one-half of Canadians who initially applied for CPPD benefits were denied. In the 2014-15 fiscal year, that meant 39,707 or 57 percent were denied.
• Canadians who wished to appeal their denial of benefits had to wait on average for almost 2.5 years or more than twice as long to get a decision under the Social Security Tribunal (SST) than the previous system. The SST was set up under the Conservatives and has been a disaster. Since it was set up in 2013, backlogged appeals have grown to 10,871 cases.
• One in three Canadians who filed appeals to the SST in fact qualified for the CPPD benefits, even though they were denied at the first two levels of decision-making.
• Even terminally ill applicants found themselves waiting longer for a decision on benefit eligibility. Only 7 percent of terminally ill applicants had a decision within 48 hours in 2015.

“Many Canadians with long-lasting and severe disabilities are waiting for years to see if they can even access Canada Pension Plan Disability benefits. It’s a disgrace,” said Canadian Labour Congress President Hassan Yussuff.

Working Canadians, even the self-employed, contribute to the Canadian Pension Plan (CPP). CPP Disability benefits are designed to support CPP contributors who find themselves no longer able to work regularly due to “severe and prolonged disability.” The CPPD is not a government income support program funded through taxes but a national, public long-term disability program funded through worker and employer contributions.

Canadians who paid into the CPP should be able to access benefits when they need it most. Among CPPD applicants are Canadians who have terminal illnesses such as stage III or IV cancer, or grave conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and paranoid schizophrenia.

However, applying for CPPD takes tenacity. Imagine living with a severe and prolonged disability and having to complete an application kit with eight documents totaling 42 pages.

Even if you are approved, CPPD benefits are modest and is only a partial replacement for income. For 2015, the average monthly CPPD benefit is $928.08 and the maximum monthly amount is $1,264.59, based on CPP contributions during the applicant’s working years. If you are also eligible for workers compensation or private disability benefits, the CPPD amount is often deducted from that.

Canadians who have exhausted all options to qualify for CPPD often have to turn to social assistance for help as a last resort.

The long list of flaws in the CPPD program penalizes Canadians who are already vulnerable and need to draw on the national public long-term disability program.

“The CPPD program needs to be fixed. Canadian workers should not be forced through an arduous application process and years of appeals to get the help they need when they need it most,” said Yussuff.

Requirement to qualify for CPPD:
Severe means that you have a mental or physical disability that regularly stops you from doing any type of substantially gainful work. Prolonged means your disability is likely to be long-term and last indefinitely or is likely to result in death.
Source: Canada Pension Plan

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But one issue that doesn’t seem to get enough attention in the Uber debate is that of accessible transportation and disability rights.

Laws surrounding accessible taxis vary by municipality and Ottawa provides a good case study since the city is currently conducting a review of its taxi regulations to take into account the emergence of new business models like Uber.

Fortunately, this review includes accessibility as one of its guiding principles.

Taxis play an essential role in Ottawa’s network of accessible transportation and the city has come a long way in increasing the number of accessible taxis. The taxi by-law currently mandates that 15% of all taxicabs are accessible, prohibits discriminatory practices, and requires drivers to complete an accessible training program.

These regulations have been effective. Currently there are 187 accessible plates in Ottawa, making up 15.7% of Ottawa’s taxi fleet. Coventry Connections, Ottawa’s main taxi dispatcher, has an agreement with Para Transpo that ensures enough accessible vehicles are available to guarantee the same level of service, the same fare levels and roughly equivalent wait times for those with mobility limitations. Ottawa now ranks near the top of North American cities for the proportion of accessible taxis. This is something to be proud of.

Uber does not offer accessible services in Ottawa.

Yes, there are additional costs associated with maintaining accessible vehicles and providing accessible services, which is why the current regulatory structure provides incentives to offer such services. Uber’s entrance into the market undermines this system, not only by skewing the ratio of accessible taxis, but by placing an increased burden on licensed drivers who provide these services. Allowing Uber drivers to essentially cherry-pick the “easier” fares creates an unfair playing field, undermines Ottawa’s network of accessible transportation and negatively impacts both drivers’ livelihoods and disability rights.

It’s important that the outcome of Ottawa’s taxi regulatory review sets a high standard for accessible transportation and does not repeat mistakes made in other municipalities. Toronto, Edmonton and Waterloo’s draft regulatory proposals were either missing provisions with respect to accessible services, or simply required that requests for accessible service are referred to another provider. This is unacceptable.

Uber’s fare pricing system, which is calculated based on supply and demand, is inherently discriminatory to those with disabilities that require accessible vehicles. Without sufficient safeguards in place, the entry of Uber will no doubt lead to a decrease in the quality of accessible transportation networks, undermining disability rights.

As Canadian municipalities grapple with the regulatory struggles spurred by Uber’s illegal activities, enforcement “efforts” continue to be a colossal failure and Uber continues to expand. Great damage has been caused to the livelihood of licensed taxi drivers and a dangerous precedent has been set for regulatory systems that protect public safety, promote decent work and ensure ethical corporate practices. Let’s not allow disability rights to be the next victim of the Uber-economy.

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Spirit Synott is an actor, dancer, performer and a member of ACTRA.  She has served on the Governance Board of ACTRA Toronto and has spent many years volunteering her time on both the ACTRA Toronto and ACTRA National diversity committees. Spirit lends her strong voice to help build awareness of the challenges faced by artists living with disabilities, and her contributions have had a significant impact on both her union and her industry.

Synott has advised ACTRA staff and governance bodies on the importance of accessibility and thinking inclusively when it comes to communicating with members. She has helped to bring awareness to the importance of closed captioning, video describe and large print options, as well as accessible office layout.  She was instrumental in helping to research and execute a survey of accessible training, casting and production facilities. Together with the Diversity committee she helped to create an awareness campaign regarding accessibility directed at screen based media industry leaders. She has also helped provide the industry at large with tools for inclusivity, including a print campaign on working with Deaf actors, the Accessibility demo reel, (a demo reel of physically diverse performers that was produced by the ACTRA Toronto Diversity committee and distributed to casting directors and agents) and events called “Casting Go-Sees” that create forums for Casting Agents to meet with Actors living with disabilities.

According to her nominator, “Spirit is an inspiration to others from the disability community and sends a strong message that being an artist is a viable profession to those in the physically diverse community”.

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Canadians with disabilities commonly face severe challenges finding adequate and secure incomes. People with disabilities have lower employment rates and higher rates of under-employment than Canadians as a whole. They are at greater risk of living with low incomes than Canadians in general. The Daily Bread Food Bank’s Who’s Hungry report finds that the share of people with disabilities using food banks has nearly doubled since 2005 (from 17% to 28%), and the HungerCount 2014 report reveals that nearly one in five households using food banks depends on disability-related benefits as their primary income source.

The structure of disability benefits compounds the problem: for instance, the Disability Tax Credit is a non-refundable tax credit, meaning that persons with disabilities need a certain level of income in order to benefit from the tax credit in the first place. The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability benefit requires that a disability be severe and prolonged, making it difficult for Canadians suffering from fluctuating and episodic disabilities (like multiple sclerosis) to access the CPP disability benefit.

To make matters worse, the federal government has moved to make it harder for Canadians living with disabilities to access Canada Pension Plan disability benefits. Having carried out no studies to justify the creation of a new tribunal, the Conservative government’s April 2012 omnibus Bill C-38 replaced the Office of the Commissioner of Review Tribunals (OCRT) and the Pension Appeals Board with the Social Security Tribunal (SST).

The Pension Appeals Board had hundreds of referees hearing appeals, but the government replaced it with a tribunal with less than 70 full-time members, half of whom heard CPP and OAS (Old Age Security) appeals—all in a bid to save money. Not only was the SST intended to achieve savings of $20 million a year (which it has done), but it was also designed to accomplish a 25-per-cent reduction in the number of appeals heard. As a result, the tribunal’s 7,000 inherited appeals have swelled to a backlog of 11,000 cases, with the tribunal managing to hear less than 350 income-security appeals in the first year of operation. There have been no implementation of standards for processing appeals in a timely manner.

The government’s new budget implementation bill rescinds the original cap on full-time tribunal staff and removes restrictions on the hours of work of part-time staff, but this comes as too little, too late.

CPP disability benefits, like CPP retirement benefits, are too low to enable Canadians to live in dignity in retirement. The maximum amount that a CPP disability beneficiary can receive is 75% of the retirement benefit they are entitled to, plus a flat amount ($457.60 in December 2014). For someone entitled to receive the average monthly CPP retirement benefit ($540.56 in October 2014), this works out to just $863.02 a month.

Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) is calling on the federal government to agree to a fully-funded, phased-in doubling of future CPP benefits to achieve retirement security for all Canadians, including Canadians with disabilities. The labour movement’s plan also aims to increase the Guaranteed Income Supplement, which would have a significant impact on people with disabilities who have had lower incomes or who have been unable to work.

The CLC, its affiliates and federations of labour are partnering with provincial and territorial governments, pension experts, political parties, retirees and seniors’ groups and other allies across the country to raise awareness about Canada’s retirement crisis and the movement’s call on government to double CPP benefits. Together they will be hosting a series of public town hall meetings on retirement security.

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