(TORONTO, ON) – Labour activists will fill the committee rooms at Queen’s Park tomorrow, as the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs hears deputations on Bill 47, a bill which will strip Ontario workers of basic workplace rights.
Ontario Federation of Labour President Chris Buckley will present to the committee at 9:00 a.m. on November 15.
“When our employment and labour laws were updated in 2017, that update was the result of more than two years of consultations,” said OFL President Chris Buckley. “This government is ramming through Bill 47, a Bill that will affect Ontario workers for years to come, without hearing from people across the province. In fact, 77 per cent of Ontarians agree that two paid sick days are needed for workers and the majority agree with an increase to a $15 minimum wage.”
The committee hearings are being held on the same day as the government delivers its fall economic update.
Bill 47 will be felt by most workers in Ontario who will be losing the upcoming increase to a $15 minimum wage, paid sick days, and equal pay for temporary, part-time, and full-time workers, and laws that make it easier to join and keep a union. Precarious and low-wage workers will be disproportionately affected.
“Bill 47 must be withdrawn. This government must do the right thing and stand up for workers,” said Ontario Federation of Labour President Chris Buckley. “Taking basic rights away from the most precarious and low-paid workers in Ontario is a dirty trick for this government to play. Removing the $15 minimum wage, taking away paid sick days, and removing equal pay for equal work provisions is a betrayal of workers in this province pure and simple,” he added.
Ontario’s economy is doing well, having added 83,000 jobs since this time last year, and an increase in full-time work across the province. Unemployment is at a record low.
“It’s very clear that decent work laws are not hurting the economy,” said Buckley. “Greater fairness in the workplace and a $15 minimum wage means that workers are better able to feed their families, have dollars to spend in the community which boosts the economy. Doug Ford said, ‘help is on the way’ for Ontarians, but what he is doing by cancelling a wage increase for low-income earners and cutting basic workplace rights isn’t helpful for workers, and it’s not helpful for the economy.”
The OFL represents 54 unions and one million workers in Ontario. For information visit www.OFL.ca and follow @OFLabour on Facebook and Twitter.
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For further information, please contact:
Meagan Perry
Director of Communications,
Ontario Federation of Labour
mperry@ofl-org.flywheelsites.com l 416-894-3456
