Dozens of labour advocates paraded around Quidi Vidi Lake in St. John’s on Monday to reflect on wins, setbacks, concerns for the future and, of course, celebrate Labour Day.
Jessica McCormick, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour, said the day is important for marking achievements while also taking time to reaffirm commitments to improving working conditions for all.
“We want to ensure that every worker has the opportunity, if they wish, to join a union,” McCormick told CBC News.
McCormick said there are still many workers in the province who are unable to unionize or benefit from what a union can provide, like new Canadians, temporary workers and gig workers.
Monday also marked a sobering anniversary — two years since a flash fire at the Come By Chance refinery resulted in the death of employee Shawn Peddle.
“Every worker has a right to come home safe at the end of the day,” McCormick said. “These are the reasons we continue to fight and it’s very important that workers come together with their unions to continue this advocacy.”
Raj Sharan, president of Newfoundland and Labrador’s New Democratic Party, was among those who attended the parade.
He said Newfoundland and Labrador is among the most unionized provinces in Canada.
“There’s so much more wealth that is now generated here and stays, and this wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for a high level of unionization,” he said.
“I’m here to remind [my kids] and myself, and respect the fact that we have civil liberties. The fact that we have a weekend, that we have labour standards. These are all achieved by workers working together, uniting together.”
Workforce upbeat, but cautious: PSAC
Debbie Lake, treasurer of the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s St. John’s area council, said the progress made has resulted in upbeat morale within the union and the workforce.
However, she also stressed the importance of making sure work to support and improve labour standards continues in the province and across the country.
“We are staring down elections. We are staring down possible changes in federal government leaders, and what comes with that is unknown,” Lake said.
“All of those benefits come from labour movement and we want to not only maintain what we have, but we want to build on that and ensure that we don’t lose it because we are in danger of losing our benefits and everything we have worked so hard for.”
Other advocates at the parade voiced the need to push back against threats like privatization and rules unions believe make it too difficult for people and workplaces to unionize.
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