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(Unceded Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Musqueam territories — Vancouver, BC) — With employers gaining a newly-extended temporary layoff period, the province must now ensure those laid-off workers have the right to return to their jobs when the layoff ends, BC Federation of Labour president Laird Cronk said today. “This economic recovery can’t be at the cost of workers,” he said. “We believe there

The BCFED released the following statement today from president Laird Cronk and secretary-treasurer Sussanne Skidmore: The tragic news that a BC Ferries maintenance worker died on the job on Friday, and a CN Rail conductor was killed while working on Monday, brings the toll to five workplace deaths in the province in just the first half of the month. That’s five workers who left for work healthy

(Coast Salish Territory, Vancouver BC) British Columbians support stronger workplace health and safety protection and Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) coverage for workers who contract COVID-19 by a wide margin, according to a survey conducted by polling firm Stratcom for the BC Federation of Labour. Asked if the WCB should provide coverage for workers infected with the virus on the job, four out

(Coast Salish Territory, Vancouver BC) - The pandemic has affected British Columbians in very different ways depending on their gender, and an equitable economic recovery requires the provincial government to see BC through that lens, the BC Federation of Labour said today. Among the findings of their report, titled Rebuilding With Equity, the BCFED points out that women have taken on much more of

(Coast Salish territory, Vancouver BC) - After months of hardship and uncertainty in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, a minimum wage increase is just what British Columbia’s lowest-paid workers need, BC Federation of Labour president Laird Cronk said today. “This is great news for hundreds of thousands of British Columbians,” Cronk said, referring to the increase in the minimum hourly wage from

(Coast Salish Territory, Vancouver BC) As BC’s economy slowly reopens, the province’s labour movement is encouraging British Columbians to think beyond just rebuilding the economy we had before the COVID-19 outbreak. “We have an unprecedented opportunity not just to restart the economy we had, but the economy we want,” said BCFED president Laird Cronk as the federation released its blueprint for