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"These and other measures to protect and support workers in precarious jobs — and to support the creation of good, secure, unionized jobs — will be important for addressing income inequality and other inequities." — Larry Brown, NUPGE President
Ottawa (18 Jan. 2021) — The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is urging the federal government to ensure there are protections and supports in place for workers who are precariously employed. Larry Brown, NUPGE President, has written a letter to Seamus O'Regan, Minister of Labour, on the issue.
The growth of precarious work
“NUPGE and its Components have been extremely concerned with the rise in precarious work in Canada,” wrote Brown. “The weakening of labour rights, privatization, and cuts to funding for public services have all contributed to the replacement of secure, well-paid jobs with precarious ones. Precarious work is playing a role in the ever-widening income and wealth inequality.”
Compared to workers with secure employment, those who are precariously employed tend to earn lower wages, are less likely to have health and other benefits, like paid sick days, and experience negative health effects. Precarious work worsens existing inequalities, as it is women, BIPOC, people with disabilities, young people, and seniors who are most likely to be precariously employed.
“The pandemic has brought into clear view the inequities in our labour market and the real dangers that precarious employment poses to workers — and to the services we rely on,” wrote Brown.
Government must ensure protections and supports in place
“NUPGE supports measures to ensure that the social safety net protects people who are self-employed and gig workers,” continued Brown. “However, reforms to EI and other federal government programs is only addressing the symptoms of the problem. Unless the weaknesses in labour and employment standards legislation that contribute to the growth in precarious employment are addressed, precarious work will continue to be a problem — and could even get worse.”
Brown called on the government to amend the Canada Labour Code to strengthen the rights and protections it provides workers, starting with amendments to prevent employers from being able to classify their employees as self-employed. When workers are classified by companies like Uber or Amazon as independent contractors, not employees, they do not have access to the same benefits and protections under labour law.
Paid sick days now
The importance of access to paid sick days has become clearer than ever during the pandemic. Public health experts and labour advocates have spoken out about the importance of paid sick days to stop the spread of COVID-19 and to protect workers’ health, safety, and livelihoods. The majority of workers in Canada still do not have access to paid sick days.
“Paid sick leave should not be a luxury,” wrote Brown. “All workers — unionized and non-unionized, full time and part time, permanent and contract workers — deserve paid sick days.”
Brown commended the federal government for introducing legislated paid sick days for federally regulated workplaces, but called on the Minister to strengthen the bill to make sick days more accessible and to work with provinces and territories to ensure that all workers have access to paid sick days.
Addressing inequities
“These and other measures to protect and support workers in precarious jobs — and to support the creation of good, secure, unionized jobs — will be important for addressing income inequality and other inequities,” Brown wrote.
“The pandemic has exposed and exacerbated existing systemic inequalities in our society — ones from which we cannot look away as we move towards the recovery.”
Read the full letter here.