FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 30, 2024
Toronto – The growing campaign Cooperate for Canada (C4C) is calling on Canada’s unions to help avoid a win by Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party of Canada in the next federal election by preventing vote-splitting in key swing ridings.
“We are asking union leaders and members to join us as we lobby the leaders of the Liberals, NDP, Greens, and Bloc to work together as parties did in France to prevent a far-right Poilievre majority,” said Barbara Schumacher, Chair, Cooperate for Canada. “We also hope these unions will do the same if Doug Ford calls an early election in Ontario.”
There are many reasons why unions should work hard to oppose Poilievre, even though he claims to be worker friendly. He has regularly supported back-to-work legislation and pushed for US-style right-to-work laws – allowing workers to opt out of union membership and dues-paying, thus weakening unions. Under his leadership, the Conservatives aggressively opposed the recent Sustainable Jobs Act. And in Stephen Harper’s Conservative government, Poilievre ignored the needs of frontline healthcare workers and voted to cut billions from public healthcare. He voted to cut support for unemployed workers, and regularly attacked workers’ rights.
In Ontario, Doug Ford’s record is equally anti-worker. He neglected the health and safety of Long Term Care workers during COVID, cancelled crucial minimum wage hikes, changed provincial regulations to take away rights from unrepresented workers, has been repeatedly ordered by the Courts to fulfill
government’s constitutional duty to bargain in good faith with healthcare workers, attacked education workers’ bargaining rights, and more.
“It’s clear that the current political leaders of Conservative parties, federal and provincial, do not support workers. Instead, they actively work against unions which ensure workers’ safety, security, and constitutional right to bargain,” said Marilyn Hay, Cooperate for Canada. “It’s time that we all come together to insist that parties which will safeguard workers’ rights cooperate rather than compete. We can’t afford to keep splitting the vote. Too much is at stake.”
For more information please visit https://cooperateforcanada.ca/
For an interview, please contact:
Barbara Schumacher – 226-753-9861, bschumac@uwaterloo.ca
Marilyn Hay – 226-972-3699, haymarilyn7@gmail.com (French)