Unifor applauds the decision of the Ontario Ombudsman to investigate the provincial government’s oversight of long-term care homes during the COVOD-19 pandemic.
In previous correspondences to you, Unifor recognized the importance of the $4 per hour “pandemic pay premium” that is being provided for front-line workers during this crisis.
Unifor, Canada’s largest media union, condemns violence against media crews across the U.S. Journalists reporting on the street protests against the abhorrent, racist murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer are being physically attacked, mostly by police but also by citizens.
In previous correspondences to you, Unifor recognized the importance of the $4 per hour “pandemic pay premium” that is being provided for front-line workers during this crisis. We certainly agree that these workers deserve the extra compensation given their roles in this crisis, their hard work, the health risks that they face while on the job and the need to self-isolate from their families to protect them. Unifor demands that pandemic pay be extended to these critical workers
Since Pandemic pay was announced on April 25, 2020, there has been confusion about who is actually covered. Unifor was the first union in Ontario to make a public demand for Pandemic Pay on April 17, launching a video and an online petition. Our position has clearly been that any worker who is subject to the Emergency Orders should receive this pay.
Unifor emphatically condemns the most recent blatant acts of racism and racially-motivated police violence in the United States of America.
But we also know racism is not just a problem in the United States. It is also the daily reality faced by Black, Indigenous and other racialized communities here in Canada as well.
Racism continues to govern the lives of Black, Indigenous and racialized peoples, and as we have seen in the case of George Floyd, racism is taking lives.
We must call the killing of George Floyd exactly what it is: anti-Black racism.
REGINA—Unifor Local 594 is extremely disappointed, but not surprised, to learn of the major loss of containment from the Co-op Refinery Complex that occurred on May 22, 2020, that resulted in the contamination of the City of Regina’s sewer system.
Premier Jason Kenney’s heavy-handed attempt to criminalize peaceful protest is an authoritarian over-reach, but will ultimately fail to silence his many critics and opponents, says Unifor.
Community members and workers at the AV Group Nackawic pulp mill in Nackawic, NB, are deeply concerned about the company’s use of 60 out-of-province contractors and the lack of health and safety controls to protect local workers.
Unifor’s National President and local union leaders will be speaking out tomorrow to highlight an unfair gap in the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) that is hurting thousands of workers in the auto, rail, marine, steel, aerospace, health care and other sectors.
Canada’s conservatives must be popping champagne corks today after the sale of Canada’s largest newspaper to two of its avid supporters.
The Toronto Star has been a consistent voice for working class Canadians for more than 100 years, leading the debate on issues Conservatives can’t stand to talk about – decent wages and working conditions, the rights of marginalized Canadians, reasonable immigration policies, and more.
TORONTO – The troubling reports from Canadian Armed Forces serving in long-term care homes in Ontario reinforces the systemic crisis in the provinces long-term care system.
SOUTHEY— Premier Scott Moe’s endless dithering on whether or not to impose a settlement from the mediators in the Co-op Refinery lockout has prompted workers to establish information pickets at five rural Co-op properties.
“It boggles the mind why Scott Moe can’t finish the job he started,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “Why did he appoint the nation’s best mediators if he was just going to sit on their recommendations? It doesn’t make any sense.”
TORONTO—Unifor is proud to partner with the Hospitality Workers Training Centre to support laid off workers in hospitality and food service across the Greater Toronto Area.
“Hotel and food service workers are among the hardest hit by the pandemic,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “That’s why our union acted immediately to ensure workers could access vital services from the Centre for job training, food and housing security, and mental health supports.”
Introduction Unifor represents 315,000 workers in workplaces across Canada. Our membership includes over 160,000 Ontario workers. Tens of thousands of Unifor members have been laid off or placed on leave because of COVID-19. Our members in the hospitality and gaming, manufacturing, and road transport sectors in Ontario have been badly affected.
TORONTO–Unifor reiterated its call for the federal government to grant workers receiving the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) to receive the Supplemental Unemployment Benefits (SUB) they would be entitled to under normal layoff circumstances, during testimony today before the Federal Finance Committee.
REGINA—After revelations that the Regina Police Service kept secret a bomb threat against picketing members, Unifor will examine its options for expanding an existing complaint against the RPS.
“Regina police have been at the beck and call of the company from the beginning of the lockout,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “Now there is clear evidence that their loyalty to the refinery has veered into a recklessness that could have cost lives.”
The COVID-19 crisis has exposed how economic inequality affects the ability of many communities to withstand the impacts of this national and international crisis.
TORONTO – Unifor welcomes the Ontario government’s announcement to launch an independent commission to investigate Ontario's Long-Term Care (LTC) system, so long as a manageable patient to staff ratio is put in place and recent changes such as pay increases and worker protection are maintained.
It’s shocking enough that a bomb threat was made against picketers at the Co-op Refinery, but to learn that no one – not Regina Police, not the mayor, not the province – lifted a finger to warn anyone puts every citizen of Regina in danger.
Think about it. A bomb at a refinery. An explosion there would put thousands of lives at risk far beyond the picket line – so you have to ask why would anyone bury such a threat.
FOAM LAKE—Federated Co-operatives Limited’s refusal to accept the recommendations of Premier Scott Moe’s mediators has again affected the fuel supply for farmers, says Unifor.
“It will not be business as usual for the refinery while they’ve locked out highly skilled workers,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “This lockout must end with the mediators’ terms.”
Unifor celebrates personal support workers (PSWs) in Ontario, and Continuing Care Assistants (CCAs) in Nova Scotia on May 19, Personal Support Worker Day.
Across Canada these workers provide the highest quality patient-centred care every day in our communities, our homes, and in long-term care homes and hospitals.
Unifor has written to Premier Ford demanding that all Community and Home Care as well as supportive housing facilities be included in provincial directives so that all workers will be provided proper Personal Protective Equipment to avoid further deaths.
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