TORONTO, ON – The Ford government’s escalating rhetoric about closing the borders and banning international students is racist dog whistle politics that has nothing to do with fighting COVID-19 and the Federal government must not enforce border controls unfairly targeting anyone, said the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario. “This is part of a…
Although COVID-19 has shown how little capacity our hospitals have after decades of cuts, the crisis for northern Ontario hospital patients will get much worse, says a Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) research paper, Ontario Hospital Crisis: Overcapacity and Under Threat released today. The Ontario 2021 budget plans to cut COVID health care funds…
TORONTO, ON – Recycled money and not enough new funding to improve school safety and supports for students: according to the union that represents 55,000 education workers in Ontario, these are the two major takeaways from the provincial government’s announcement yesterday of the 2021-22 Grants for Students Needs (GSN). Leaders from the Canadian Union of…
WELLESLEY, ON – Outside workers for Wellesley Township, represented by Local 1542 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE 1542) voted unanimously to authorize their union to take strike action if a fair deal can not be reached in the current round of contract negotiations. The vote took place in a virtual meeting held…
TORONTO, ON – Ontario paramedics, represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), are concerned with a government plan to use a private, third-party company to participate in the province’s vaccine rollout, claiming that the company will need to hire working paramedics from Ontario’s land ambulance services. CUPE, Ontario’s largest paramedic union representing over…
When Winnipeg residents who rely on refugee settlement services discovered that the Manitoba Interfaith Immigration Council (MIIC) locked out staff, it highlighted the essential services members of CUPE Local 2348 provide. From across province, CUPE Ontario’s 280,000 members are in complete solidarity with the members who’ve been locked out since April 27 and who have…
Asian and South Asian Heritage Month has been celebrated in May since the 1990s and was formally recognized by the Canadian government in 2002. The occasion is an opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of people of Asian descent while recognizing the struggles and unique histories of these communities. Although Canada likes to present itself as…
TORONTO, ON – The clear recommendations from Ontario’s Long-Term Care Commission for the creation of more full-time jobs and, on the application of the precautionary principle in health care settings, require that the provincial government and the medical officer of health act immediately to prevent more COVID-19 deaths and LTC resident harm, says the Canadian…
CUPE Ontario and the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) recommit to connecting the dots between all workers’ struggles. Our solidarity for Indigenous Land Defenders at 1492 Land Back Lane from Six Nations and our solidarity for migrant workers are interwoven. We support Land Defenders asserting their right to their traditional territory because we recognize the…
On May 1, CUPE Ontario’s 280,000 members are among the many around the world who recognize International Workers’ Day, or May Day. With this being the second May Day in the grips of a global pandemic, and with the third wave disproportionately crashing on the backs of workers, the lessons and the path forward are not lost…
