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Results: 1 - 15 of 95
Angella MacEwen
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Angella MacEwen
2021-05-20 12:34
Thank you very much. It's nice to be here with all of you.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees is Canada's largest union, with over 700,000 members. Our members work in a broad cross-section of the economy such as health care, education, municipalities, libraries, universities, social services, public utilities, emergency services, transportation and airlines.
With regard to this budget, we want to reiterate that investment in the care economy, including health care, child care and social services, will have social and economic returns far higher than the current cost of borrowing. A vibrant, accessible care sector ensures that everyone can participate in the workforce, which will be essential throughout the economic recovery. Government investment in care improves labour market outcomes for women and overall productivity, allowing governments to recoup the upfront costs at the end, so we're very glad to see the investment in child care that was proposed with the provinces.
To make sure this reaches its full potential, we need to see a strong workforce development plan alongside the proposed child care spending to make sure that we have enough trained workers and to ensure that the lower costs of child care we want to see for parents is not being subsidized by pushing the wages of workers even lower than they already are.
In terms of employment insurance, CUPE has long asked for some of the reforms to employment insurance that we see temporarily implemented here such as the lower-paying Canadian entrance requirement and the extra five weeks in high unemployment locations.
We were disappointed to see that the promised extension of EI sickness benefits to 26 weeks has been delayed until the summer of 2022, because that leaves a substantial number of long-haul COVID patients without the economic supports they'll need. They will have exhausted all other benefits, and implementing the EI sickness benefits right now would have been a way to kind of bridge that gap for a lot of people.
We are happy that there is substantial money for training; however, nearly all of it is being targeted for employer-led and employer-developed training. There is no direct support for workers themselves and no support for worker-selected training. The need for training supports and flexibility on training will only grow more urgent as Canada's economy transitions to create more green jobs.
On the minimum wage, CUPE is happy to see the federal government establish a federal minimum wage of $15 per hour. We recommend that the federal minimum wage be adjusted upward annually faster than CPI for the first five years, recognizing that the costs of essentials such as food, water and shelter are increasing faster than the overall rate of inflation, and the $15 rate is what was proposed several years ago and has already been eaten away by several years of inflation.
In terms of tax fairness, this budget was a big disappointment. Tax cuts since 2000 have reduced federal revenues by over $50 billion annually, and the major beneficiaries of these tax cuts have been large corporations and the wealthiest Canadians. These cuts have left a huge hole in federal budgets and have had a ripple effect across provincial budgets as the federal government stepped back from funding essential public services.
The federal government could have increased revenues by over $50 billion without increasing tax rates on middle- and low-income Canadians with fair tax measures like restoring the federal corporate tax rate to 21%; eliminating wasteful and regressive tax loopholes; changing how we tax capital gains deductions, the benefit of which goes to the top 10% of income earners; cracking down on tax avoidance in ways that we know will make a difference rather than just continuing consultations; and introducing a wealth tax on estates over $20 million. The federal government should also still consider introducing an excess profits tax that could raise up to $8 billion, even if it's only on 15% of excess profits for one year.
In terms of transparency and accountability for public supports, unions asked the federal government, when it was implementing supports such as the wage subsidy, to make sure the rules for this program were fair. What we've seen is that did not happen, so lots of very profitable companies have taken public money at the same time as they were paying out big bonuses to executives and dividends to shareholders, laying off or locking out workers and using the wage subsidy as a way to push workers to accept lower working conditions and wages.
There's substantial room for improvement in terms of the transparency of corporate support to ensure the effectiveness and fairness of public spending. CUPE has recommended several ways in which the government could strengthen these conditions and improve transparency and accountability. These include clauses that mandate labour protections for workers, including protection of benefits and health and safety protocols, and ensure protections for whistle-blowers. When there is a union in the workplace, include them in the negotiations for wage subsidies and other supports. For a year after a corporation receives public subsidies or loans, implement prohibitions on dividend capital distribution and share repurchases.
As well, make information about all of this, about how public money is being spent, clear and publicly available.
Thank you.
Jerry Dias
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Jerry Dias
2021-05-20 12:51
Thank you very much, Mr. Easter.
Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. I’m pleased to be here today to provide input on the budget implementation bill. My name is Jerry Dias, and I'm the national president of Unifor.
Just as an aside, it's always my pleasure to appear before many MPs I have had some stimulating debates and conversations with over the years. Once I give my presentation I'm going to have to get off the call. I'll be speaking to the Prime Minister very shortly on a variety of things, but also I have my national executive board meeting going on as we speak and I'm going to get to that once I'm finished with the Prime Minister.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Unifor has advocated for governments at all levels to put policies in motion to build a fair, inclusive and resilient economic recovery. We call it our “build back better” plan. This year’s budget and the first budget implementation bill show the government is at least on the right track. There are a number of items in the bill that are a good start but need some improvement.
These are the items I will bring to your attention today. First, I want to address the minimum wage. Reinstating the federal minimum wage and increasing it to $15 an hour is a long overdue move. It will significantly impact more than 67,000 people working in the federally regulated sector, but $15 an hour is no longer adequate. The truth is that we’ve been calling for a $15 minimum wage for many years now. It may have been enough five years ago, but it's certainly not enough today.
Frankly, the government was talking about implementing this in 2019, and even then it would have been somewhat short. The minimum wage should be set at 60% of the median wage for full-time workers. This was the recommendation of the government’s own expert panel on modern federal labour standards. Following this policy would set the minimum wage at $16.73. Government should be adjusting the minimum wage annually by inflation or by the average annual wage increase, whichever is higher, and establishing a federal low-wage commission to monitor the impact of low wages on workers and the labour market.
Second, I want to address the employment insurance and recovery benefit extensions.
Extending the wage subsidy program is an important step in keeping workers employed during this tumultuous time. The ramp-down rates make sense in many circumstances, but for the hardest-hit sectors, such as air transportation, this change can make the difference between a worker keeping their job or not. We recommend increasing the top-up rate for companies with significant, persistent revenue decline, as they may not be eligible for the Canada recovery hiring program because they are not yet ready to hire new workers.
The executive compensation rule for publicly traded companies should be applied for all wage subsidy support received in 2021, and not just what is received after June 5.
The extension of the Canada recovery benefit and the temporary changes to employment insurance are important. Together, EI and the CRB have illustrated the incredibly important role income support plays in stabilizing workers' lives and the need to fix our currently broken EI system with permanent reforms. We recommend some additional items to strengthen the positive effects these programs can have, including reducing the qualifying hours from the current 420 to 360, and maintaining the minimum benefit rate at $500, while increasing the income replacement rate.
Third, the budget takes an important step in stabilizing employment at airports by reducing some of the negative effects of contract flipping. We support the change and encourage consultation on the regulations in order to ensure all workers are protected by it. In order to further reduce the negative effects of contract flipping, government should extend successor rights.
Fourth, implementing the digital tax on digital giants and extending HST to streaming services are important steps to creating a level playing field and ensuring that large, digital corporations are paying their fair share. We're very concerned that the laws put in place will result in the digital giants not paying their fair share. That outcome would be unacceptable.
Fifth, the modest changes to OAS acknowledge that the current retirement security system does not provide adequate income for retirees, but it is not enough. Government should be exploring innovation in providing defined benefit plans for workers instead of looking to modest changes for the worst off and annuities that mimic retirement security provided by a DB plan, but deliver less.
Finally, the nod to the importance of Canada-made, zero-emission vehicles through tax incentives is incredibly important and a worthwhile endeavour. I will take a moment to remind folks that we do not yet build ZEVs in Canada. We have to keep this in mind as we consider ways to encourage consumer adoption, but we don't need millions in public dollars subsidizing imports. If we want to build this industry in Canada, and I think we do, all policies, including the development of charging stations, must move in lockstep with our industrial development plans.
Thank you. Kaylie will look forward to taking your questions.
Once again, thank you all very much for your time today.
Chris Aylward
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Chris Aylward
2021-05-18 16:16
Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
My name is Chris Aylward and I'm the national president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada. We represent 210,000 workers across Canada, most of whom work in the federal public service, but we also represent workers in the broader public sector and in the private sector.
Bill C-30 covers a lot of ground, as it should. These extraordinary times require extraordinary government intervention. The pandemic exposed many fault lines. Seniors became infected and many died in long-term care facilities because of numerous government policy failures. Low-wage workers, the majority of whom are women, Black, indigenous, Asian, racialized and people with disabilities, have suffered tragically and disproportionately because government policy has failed to address inequities embedded in every one of our systems. Now is the time to correct the mistakes of the past.
We welcome the promise of national standards for long-term care, although we regret that funding will be delayed until 2022. Despite its absence in the legislation, we hope the government will reconsider its efforts to improve long-term care by working to end the public sector pension plan's ownership of Revera Incorporated. Instead, let's put the second-largest Canadian network of for-profit long-term care facilities under public ownership and control. Revera is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Public Sector Pension Investment Board, which manages the investments of the pension plans of the federal public service, the Canadian Armed Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the reserve force. PSAC made the call for a change in ownership of Revera as a result of mounting evidence that the incidence of death and illness attributable to COVID-19 is disproportionately large in private, for-profit long-term care facilities.
We are glad to see that workers will continue to see temporary support during the pandemic, but we also need far-reaching permanent improvements in income programs such as employment insurance. A federal minimum wage is a very good thing, but $15 an hour is still a low wage. Workers deserve a budget that creates conditions for decent jobs, paid sick leave and decent pay and benefits in every jurisdiction.
Also, the budget does not deliver the national pharmacare program that the government's own commission recommended. This will undoubtedly continue to create financial hardship and will lead to worse health outcomes for millions of Canadians. Nobody should choose between paying for critical medicine and paying for groceries, or have to skip prescription refills to pay the rent.
The transformative element of budget 2021 is the promise of a Canada-wide system of early learning and child care, backed by $30 billion over the next five years. Bill C-30 authorizes transfers to the provinces and territories of $2.9 billion in 2021-22, to be paid according to terms and conditions set out in bilateral agreements. PSAC started campaigning for federal action of this magnitude 40 years ago. Lowering parents' fees to an average of $10 a day while expanding the number of licensed child care spaces will bring down the obstacles stopping mothers from participating fully in the paid labour force. It will increase the social and economic security of women and will especially help those who now suffer the greatest inequity.
Furthermore, increasing women's access to paid employment will give the economy a huge boost now and in the future. The global pandemic has demonstrated this without question. When child care disappeared during multiple rounds of lockdowns and outbreaks, women were the ones most impacted and forced out of the workforce. The economic loss was immeasurable.
However, to realize these benefits, the federal government must use its $30 billion to negotiate meaningful changes in how child care is delivered. The economy needs a secure supply of publicly funded and managed child care. It should be predominantly not-for-profit or public. The quality must be high, and those who work in child care must be qualified and paid accordingly. The project is ambitious and expensive, but if done right it will pay for itself. We urge you to support it and hold the government to account for building the child care system Canada needs and wants.
Lastly, despite some gaps, we applaud the government's efforts to continue to work at increasing equity for all Canadians. We support the commitment to combatting systemic racism and anti-Black racism, both in the federal public service and across Canada.
We're encouraged by the funding dedicated to ensuring the rights of those living with disabilities, funding in support of the work of the LGBTQ2 secretariat and the development of an action plan, as well as continued funding to address long-standing issues in indigenous communities.
Mr. Chair, thank you for your time. I look forward to any questions.
Thank you.
David Charter
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David Charter
2021-05-17 17:00
Good afternoon. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My name is David Charter. I'm the director of the research and innovation division at the labour program at Employment and Social Development Canada. I'm here today with Sébastien St-Arnaud, the manager of policy development at the labour program. We're here to talk about the proposed amendments to part III of the Canada Labour Code in division 23 of the budget implementation act related to minimum wage.
Part III of the Canada Labour Code establishes minimum working conditions, such as hours of work, annual vacations, various types of job-protected leave. It also sets the minimum wage for employees in the federally regulated private sector. The federally regulated private sector includes about 6% of all Canadian employees, employed in industries such as banking, telecommunications, interprovincial and international transportation and most federal Crown corporations and in certain activities on first nations reserves. Part III does not apply to the federal public service.
Currently, part III of the code sets the federal minimum wage as the general minimum wage established by the province or territory in which the employee is usually employed. The mandate letter of the Minister of Labour includes a commitment to raise the federal minimum wage to at least $15 per hour.
Budget 2021 announced this legislation, which amends part III of the code, to establish a federal minimum wage of $15 per hour, which would rise with inflation, and with provisions to ensure that wherever provincial or territorial minimum wages are higher, such a wage will prevail. The new minimum wage would come into force after royal assent.
To ensure that the federal minimum wage remains relevant and rises with inflation, on April 1 of each year after the year the amended minimum wage provisions come into force, the minimum wage would be adjusted based on Canada's consumer price index for the previous calendar year.
I'll finish my remarks by mentioning that our estimates are that approximately 26,200 employees in the federally regulated private sector earn less than $15 per hour and will benefit from the new minimum wage rate.
Thanks. I'm happy to take any questions you might have.
View Peter Julian Profile
NDP (BC)
Thank you very much.
Are there any provisions for making the rise in the minimum wage quicker than the six months after royal assent?
David Charter
View David Charter Profile
David Charter
2021-05-17 17:02
No. Right now in the legislation, the $15 minimum wage would come into force six months after royal assent, and then it would be adjusted in April of the year after the provisions come into force.
View Peter Julian Profile
NDP (BC)
Thank you for that.
I have just a brief comment, Mr. Chair, if you'll permit me. That was in the NDP's election platform for the last two elections, so it's good to see it there.
View Tamara Jansen Profile
CPC (BC)
I was wondering, first, if I could get a list again of who you are saying this is applying to—which jobs? I know you're saying it's federally regulated private companies, but what was the list that you gave us?
David Charter
View David Charter Profile
David Charter
2021-05-17 17:03
What I can say is that part III of the Canada Labour Code applies to federally regulated companies, and that includes industries such as banking, telecommunications, interprovincial and international transport and federal Crown corporations. I could also just add that I mentioned that 26,200 employees making less than $15 per hour would likely be impacted by this change. They work in industries like road transportation, non-road transportation, postal and courier, banking, telecom and broadcasting.
View Tamara Jansen Profile
CPC (BC)
You're suggesting that this minimum wage is tacked closely onto the inflation rate. What if inflation becomes exorbitant over the next little while under the impact of COVID?
David Charter
View David Charter Profile
David Charter
2021-05-17 17:04
As you mentioned, the new minimum wage will be indexed based on the CPI, in April of the year after these provisions come into force. There is a provision in the amendment whereby if the CPI goes down there would be no adjustment, so the minimum wage couldn't go down, but there is no provision in these amendments related to exorbitant inflation.
View Tamara Jansen Profile
CPC (BC)
If we would have, say, 10% inflation, then the wages would go up that much, and they would never come back down from that.
David Charter
View David Charter Profile
David Charter
2021-05-17 17:05
At the moment, the way the legislation is drafted, there's no provision to not have an adjustment, were inflation to be high.
View Ted Falk Profile
CPC (MB)
View Ted Falk Profile
2021-05-17 17:05
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Your team has obviously done a SWOT analysis on this program. Do you have any numbers at all as to how many of those 26,000 jobs would no longer exist if this happens?
David Charter
View David Charter Profile
David Charter
2021-05-17 17:05
I can answer that question for you if you'll bear with me.
It is possible that there could be some disemployment effects related to putting in place a federal minimum wage, which would have a negative impact on either employment or on hours worked, especially potentially for those who are lower skilled or who have less experience, maybe for young people, but there's growing international research suggesting that the disemployment effects such as these are not as high as previously thought.
Depending on assumptions, looking at different elasticity rates that my team looked at, our estimates are that it could range anywhere from say 162 to maybe to 800 jobs that could be impacted by disemployment effects where there might be a reduction in hours, or other impacts on employment as a result of this.
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