Today is National Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada. For many years this day has served to recognize the history, heritage and diversity of First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples in Canada.
But this year is different.
As people across this country pause to reflect on the horrors inflicted by the Canadian residential school program for Indigenous Peoples, and the ongoing trauma suffered by the families and communities affected, HSA is donating $25,000 to the Indian Residential Schools Survivors Society, an organization with a twenty-year history of providing essential services to Residential School Survivors, their families, and those dealing with Intergenerational traumas.
Working in partnership with the government of British Columbia, Health Sciences Association of BC has secured $3 million in new funding to support professional development for members covered by the Health Sciences Professional Bargaining Association collective agreement. The funding, provided by the BC Ministry of Health, will allow members to pursue further specialization of skills in key professions.
Periods are a fact of life. That’s why HSA, in partnership with the United Way, has long advocated for free access to necessary menstrual products.
On April 19, Minister of Finance, Chrystia Freeland, tabled the first budget in 2 years. The headline announcement of Budget 2021 was the investment in a national child care system. This was a significant win for the labour movement and other child care advocates, but the fight continues at the provincial level.
Prominent voices in BC’s health sector are calling on the BC government to deliver a permanent paid sick leave program with coverage of at least ten days of worker wages. The appeal to government comes as new data from the Workers’ Compensation Board shows rising numbers of workplace exposures, and as BC’s health care system strains under high rates of hospitalizations due to COVID-19.
On Tuesday, April 20, the BC government released the first full provincial budget of the current pandemic crisis.
As expected, the priorities are aimed squarely at pandemic support for the immediate term and economic recovery for the longer term. There is significant new investment in public infrastructure, health care, programs to benefit vulnerable British Columbians, and ongoing support for business sectors hit hard over the last year.
The following article is reposted from the NUPGE website.
Ottawa (20 April 2021) — The federal government delivered its first budget in 2 years and the first since COVID-19 struck the world.
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Joint Statement by Canada’s Provincial and Territorial Federations of Labour In advance of the federal, provincial and territorial labour ministers’ meeting, provincial and territorial federations of labour are united in demanding that provincial and territorial governments guarantee seamless access to universal, permanent and adequate employer-provided sick days for all workers. |
The BC Federation of Labour Young Workers’ Committee (YWC) is a standing committee of the BC Federation of Labour (BC Fed) dedicated to encouraging union participation among young people and to address inequity that young workers face as a result of discriminatory beliefs, policies, and legislation.
