Checkout - President's Message, Winter 2022

Solidarity and strength in the face of anti-worker politics

On November 14, 2022, the Ford government repealed Bill 28, Keeping Students in Class Act, 2022. Bill 28 was a volatile piece of legislation. Not only was it meant to prevent CUPE’s planned strike, but it invoked the notwithstanding clause and threatened to fine each member $4,000 per day if they went on strike.

That’s what it looks like when a government tries to bully workers.

And, too often, these tactics do work: it has become too easy to get the public – to get workers –to vilify each other.

Even the words used to name this Bill – and many others – are a good example of how words can be damaging. The workers on strike don’t want to be out on strike; they would much rather be in the classroom. But there’s a reason Ford didn’t call it the ‘Trampling on Charter Rights and Ensuring Low Wage Workers Stay That Way’ Bill.

Your Union was proud to be one of the many labour organizations that stood shoulder to shoulder with CUPE members on the picket lines. That show of solidarity across the labour movement was important. It was a clear warning that the government had made a serious miscalculation. Read more about the protest on page 6.

This government has eliminated revenue generating taxes and fees to appease voters with small handouts. Ending license plate renewal fees equals $1 billion in lost income for the province. The recently extended gas tax credit of 5.6 cents is costing another $1.2 billion in revenue. And paying parents $200 - $250 per school-aged child to help them ‘catch up’ cost about $365 million from education funding.

Plus, with reports of Emergency Room closures, paediatric beds filled beyond capacity, communities repeatedly without ambulance services, and staggeringly long wait times at the ERs that can remain open – it’s clear that our entire healthcare system needs more than just the beds Ford has promised.

It takes years to fix systems that have been chronically underfunded. Future generations that aren’t old enough to vote are being robbed of services; all of us who are working age right now will be paying the price for these decisions as we get older, too; and our elderly and ill are already paying the price for these decisions.

Ford’s invocation of the notwithstanding clause, consistent underfunding of our public systems, and continued elimination of major revenue streams for the province in the name of band-aid payments; we need to be paying attention to these things.

Our systems aren’t perfect, but we cannot allow healthcare and education to be at the very bottom of the priority list. And we cannot allow any government to attack workers’ rights or trample on charter rights.

While this year continues to be a difficult one for many, and the challenges facing working people are far from over, I do hope the holidays bring some joy and peace to everyone. On behalf of your Local Union, have a safe and happy holiday season.

In Solidarity,

Shawn Haggerty president@ufcw175.com