Communities across Ontario are furious! 2019 has already been made harder, not easier, for millions of workers because Premier Doug Ford rolled back our hard-won $15 minimum wage, cancelled paid sick days and even reversed the law that made it mandatory to pay part-time, contract, casual and temporary workers the same as their full-time counterparts.
Pushing workers in low-wage, precarious employment further into poverty is unacceptable -- and we need to make it our job to let everyone know what the Conservatives have done. That’s why we’ve produced a set of posters (and leaflets) to name and shame the Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) who took away our rights. To find a customized poster (11x17, tabloid size) for your MPP, click here. To find a matching set of leaflets (2UP layout on letter size), click here. Help us share these resources by posting or distributing them in your neighbourhood.
If you don’t live in a riding where the MPP helped roll back our rights,
please feel free to use the Doug Ford poster and leaflet.
Danger ahead: Bill 66
Right now it's crucial that we keep organizing because new attacks on workers and our communities are on the way. Not content with rolling back so many of our workplace rights, the Ford government quietly tabled Bill 66, the Restoring Ontario's Competitiveness Act, late December. If adopted, Bill 66 would: weaken environmental protections; reduce workers’ access to stable pension plans; reduce child care spaces, weaken the rules that ensure child care workers are present in adequate numbers to care for our children and get properly trained; make it harder for trades and labourers in the public sector to get the protection of a union agreement; and more.
Shockingly, not only would Bill 66 remove the employer obligation to display a simple poster in the workplace about workers’ rights, it would also remove the long-standing Ministry of Labour protections for workers against excessive hours of work and unpaid overtime.
Fortunately, workers are not going to put up with this.
Make your voice heard!
Premier Doug Ford needs to be reminded that while he may have the majority of seats inside Queen's Park, WE are the majority in Ontario. Please click here to email Ford right now (your local MPP will be copied too). Let's demand that he immediately withdraw Bill 66 and stop the attacks on our jobs, our services, and our legal protections.
Until February 19, Ontario Legislative Assembly happens to be on recess. This means our provincial representatives are in their home ridings, attending to constituency matters. Fair labour laws save lives, but Bill 66 does the opposite. No matter which political party your MPP belongs to, please make sure to visit or call them to deliver this important message.
Help organize your community
We're only 3 weeks into 2019 but multiple $15 and Fairness organizing meetings have already taken place in Ottawa, Kingston, Barrie and Toronto. Last Saturday, the women’s march was on fire across Ontario, even though the day was incredibly cold. There is a real appetite in all corners of the province to hold elected officials to account. Help us organize to win decent work for ALL.
Click here to download our new sign-up sheet where you can read more about our big vision for decent work. If you have friends or co-workers who want to get involved, have them add their names and contact information, then email the sheet to us. You can also get your union, group, or network to join $15 & Fairness by visiting: www.15andfairness.org/sign_up
Upcoming Events
Please scroll below to see upcoming events. If you don't see one in your community, and are interested in hosting a meeting or a Know Your Right Workshop, email us at [email protected] so we can help you get started.
January 25
BARRIE, Community Education and Outreach
Friday, 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM - Meridian Place, Barrie, 6 Simcoe Street
Click here to RSVP, Click here to share on Facebook
January 26
TORONTO, West Toronto Canvass
Saturday, 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM - Outside Dufferin Station, North West corner of Dufferin/Bloor
Click here to RSVP, Click here to share on Facebook
January 29
TORONTO, City-wide Organizing Meeting
Tuesday, 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM - 720 Spadina Avenue, Unit 223
***Doors open at 5:30 PM, Meeting starts at 6:00 PM
Click here to RSVP, Click here to share on Facebook
February 1
TORONTO, Cuales son tus Derechos Labores apartir de Enero 2019
Friday, 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM - 720 Spadina Avenue, Unit 223
** This Know Your Rights workshop will be in Spanish only.
For more information, click here.
February 9
ETOBICOKE, Etobicoke Lakeshore Outreach
Saturday, 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM - Outside the Kipling subway station
Click here to RSVP, Click here to share on Facebook
March 21
CROSS CANADA, International Day for the Elimination of Racism
Mark this important day in your calendar, and stay tuned for details about a local action happening near you. We are encouraging our networks to help centre migrant workers’ issues on that day. For more information, visit: migrantrights.ca.