TORONTO – Following today’s provincial announcement, Unifor is once again asking the Ontario government to introduce permanent, employer-paid sick leave that meets the needs of workers.
Ontario's auditor general Special Report on Pandemic Readiness and Response in Long-Term Care says due to years of governments neglecting systemic concerns, the government was not prepared or equipped to handle the issues created by the pandemic.
It is no surprise that the company is choosing to communicate bargaining topics or so called “rumours” directly with the membership. They do this in every round of bargaining, fishing for information that may give them the upper hand in negotiations. The bargaining team has been as clear as possible in the communications sent out to the entire membership, regarding the topics raised at the table, including concessionary demands brought forward by the company.
Ontario conservative’s weak proposal for an expanded Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB) does not meet the need for paid sick days amid mass death and continued COVID-19 spike, Unifor says.
This column originally appeared in the Toronto star.
To hear executives at two of Canada’s largest retailers and a private long-term care home chain tell it, they did a pretty bang up job handling the pandemic – and promptly wrote themselves hefty bonus cheques to prove it.
We’re talking about millions in bonuses, on top of salaries that already put them in the top one per cent.
Unions representing 175,000 workers serving on the frontlines of this pandemic re-iterate demand that the Ford government support workers
TORONTO, ON – Today, SEIU Healthcare, Unifor, and CUPE, unions representing 175,000 healthcare workers across Ontario, are concerned that the Ford government in Ontario has introduced a Bill to regulate personal support workers (PSWs) without also providing the urgent supports they need right now as they continue to fight the pandemic.
The 1,100 workers have been without a collective agreement since December 2018.
Unifor is warning the federal government that back-to-work legislation is contrary to the principles of fair and free collective bargaining. Legislation of this nature always gives the employer the upper hand, and Unifor calls on the Maritime Employers Association (MEA) to return to the bargaining table and negotiate with the workers and their union.
As Unifor prepares to mark the National Day of Mourning on April 28, the union is calling for immediate government action to provide pandemic protection for workers.
TORONTO – Unifor calls on Premier Doug Ford to exempt ORNGE paramedics from Bill 124, including the law’s wage restraint provisions, to avoid a possible strike and allow them to bargain fairly. "The road to avoiding a strike vote is respecting paramedics and resolving this issue starts and ends with Doug Ford," said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President.
On April 28, our heart-felt condolences are extended for the tragic loss of life occurring across the country due to workplace injury and occupational disease, especially during the heightened safety concerns of this COVID-19 pandemic.
We remember:
Leonard Rodriques, Local 40 Mike Patterson, Local 2002
In a panel discussion on Zoom, U.S. and Canadian workers discussed how many of the same systemic problems of capitalism are fuelling both the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.
The Honourable Jason Kenney, P.C., M.L.A. Premier of Alberta
Dear Premier, Unifor represents hundreds of thousands of members across the country, including countless heroes on the frontlines of the pandemic, some of whom have tragically succumbed to COVID-19. We understand firsthand how important it is to accelerate current vaccination efforts to protect Canadian workers and place our economy back on solid footing. Paid vaccine leave must be a part of the equation if we are to overcome this pandemic as soon as possible.
The Honourable John Horgan, P.C., M.L.A. Premier of British Columbia
Dear Premier, Unifor represents hundreds of thousands of members across the country, including countless heroes on the frontlines of the pandemic, some of whom have tragically succumbed to COVID-19. We understand firsthand how important it is to accelerate current vaccination efforts to protect Canadian workers and place our economy back on solid footing. Paid vaccine leave must be a part of the equation if we are to overcome this pandemic as soon as possible.
The Honourable Brian Pallister, M.L.A. Premier of Manitoba
Dear Premier,
Unifor represents hundreds of thousands of members across the country, including countless heroes on the frontlines of the pandemic, some of whom have tragically succumbed to COVID-19. We understand firsthand how important it is to accelerate current vaccination efforts to protect Canadian workers and place our economy back on solid footing. Paid vaccine leave must be a part of the equation if we are to overcome this pandemic as soon as possible.
The Honourable Blaine Higgs, M.L.A. Premier of New Brunswick
Dear Premier,
Unifor represents hundreds of thousands of members across the country, including countless heroes on the frontlines of the pandemic, some of whom have tragically succumbed to COVID-19. We understand firsthand how important it is to accelerate current vaccination efforts to protect Canadian workers and place our economy back on solid footing. Paid vaccine leave must be a part of the equation if we are to overcome this pandemic as soon as possible.
The Honourable Andrew Furey, M.H.A., F.R.C.S.C. Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
Dear Premier,
Unifor represents hundreds of thousands of members across the country, including countless heroes on the frontlines of the pandemic, some of whom have tragically succumbed to COVID-19. We understand firsthand how important it is to accelerate current vaccination efforts to protect Canadian workers and place our economy back on solid footing. Paid vaccine leave must be a part of the equation if we are to overcome this pandemic as soon as possible.
The Honourable Iain Rankin, M.L.A. Premier of Nova Scotia
Dear Premier,
Unifor represents hundreds of thousands of members across the country, including countless heroes on the frontlines of the pandemic, some of whom have tragically succumbed to COVID-19. We understand firsthand how important it is to accelerate current vaccination efforts to protect Canadian workers and place our economy back on solid footing. Paid vaccine leave must be a part of the equation if we are to overcome this pandemic as soon as possible.
Today the government announced a new order under the EMPCA that authorizes health care professionals to provide patient care services outside their regular scope of practice:
WINNIPEG—Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister’s refusal to ensure workers can get vaccinated at no cost to them is callous and endangers the province’s most vulnerable, says Unifor.
“It makes no sense for Brian Pallister to drag his feet on vaccinating Manitobans,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “Paid vaccination leave should be considered the bare minimum and Brian Pallister won’t even do that.”
Unifor continues to demand the immediate introduction of permanent, employer-paid sick leave as Premier Doug Ford delays action, shifts the blame and abandons essential workers, as ICU’s fill to capacity.
PRINCE GEORGE-Two of the country’s largest pulp and paper unions, Unifor and the Public and Private Workers of Canada (PPWC), have agreed to continue to work together in the next round of pulp and paper bargaining for members across Western Canada.
“There is strength in unity, and with both of our caucus’s working jointly we will be ready to look after the best interests of our members,” said Gary Fiege, PPWC President.
This year, we mark Earth Day in a context where the COVID-19 pandemic continues to create an unfair burden on working people all over the world. As a trade union, we know all too well that the devastating impact of COVID-19 on the lives, livelihoods and well-being of working people in Canada and abroad. Similarly, the climate crisis, and our society's failure to plan for it, will result in a disproportionate weight on working people, especially racialized communities and their families.
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