President’s Message Shawn Haggerty

Thank you to our Members for your strength and dedication

I want to start this message to you, our Members, by extending a huge thank you to each and every one of you. To all of you who went and continue to go to work and do your jobs with care throughout the current COVID-19 crisis – thank you. To those who had to self-isolate or quarantine for themselves or to look after loved ones – thank you. To everyone who stays home when they can and practices physical distancing to help protect the most vulnerable among us – thank you.

I know that our Members in every industry are strong, resilient, and dedicated. And I know that many of you are scared and exhausted, too. This situation is putting unprecedented stress on you and your families.

Your Union has always known the value of your labour. I hope that these last few weeks has shown the true value of your labour to your employers as well.

We continue to fight for our health care workers who are doing life-saving work each and every day, often under-staffed and always overworked. We continue to fight for our retail grocery and pharmacy workers who face huge line ups, empty shelves, and impatient customers while trying to navigate their jobs safely. We continue to fight for our food supply chain workers at all levels – from the factory floor to warehouses and shipping – who keep food products moving across our country. We continue to fight for sanitation workers who have the heavy task of making sure many businesses, hospitals, and factories are clean.

Your Union continues to fight to make all employers recognize your essential work and that they must do everything to provide you with a safe work environment.

Some employers have stepped up in this crisis to provide premiums for working through this crisis, and some have even provided top ups to Employment Insurance (EI), paid time off for quarantines or required self-isolation, and more. We were also encouraged to see so many improve health and safety protocols to protect your health and safety on the job. Some employers with layoffs and closures have ensured continuation of benefits by paying those premiums for their out-ofwork employees.

One of the things this crisis has confirmed is; yes, employers, the government, and the public to some degree have long-undervalued many kinds of jobs. The crisis also highlights that workers wouldn’t have to be as scared or beg their employers for paid sick leave, better wages, child care provisions, and stricter health and safety precautions, if the current government actually wanted to protect working people.

But, among some of the first things Doug Ford did was:

- Halt minimum wage increases at $14 per hour.

- Cancel the already inadequate TWO paid sick days per year and replace them with three UNPAID days.

- Throw out the 10 Personal Emergency Leave days per year.

It’s disheartening that it takes a crisis of this magnitude for our government to provide working people with even the most basic of human rights. Do we really need to reach this level of emergency to recognize that workers in health care, in the food supply chain, in sanitation, in transportation, in maintenance, in public works and public services, and many more industries are indispensable and integral to keeping Canadians healthy, safe, and fed?

While I do commend the government for stepping up in this time of great need, we cannot forget that some of the first actions Doug Ford took when he was sworn into office were anti-worker. This is why we lobby, constantly, to all levels of government to do better for working people. We will continue to push the government to maintain and improve pay and protection for all workers throughout this crisis and after.

The truth is you were always essential: it took this crisis for the public, your employers, and our government to recognize it.

Stay strong and safe. Your Union is here for you.

In Solidarity, Shawn Haggerty