I know you don’t need a lecture on all the things unions have done to help Canadians, (fighting to increase minimum wage, better pensions for seniors, same sex benefits, paid parental leave, 5- day workweeks, smaller class size, subsidized daycare). There are many examples, but the bottom line is unions work to improve EVERYONE’S quality of life & work.
So it’s bizarre to see Ontario Conservatives campaigning on a platform that includes “bringing public sector pay cheques in line with private sector standards”. What are they talking about? If they mean decent pay and pensions, that has nothing to do with whether you work for government or a private company. Some private companies have good pay & benefits-usually when the employees have a union to fight for them. If there is no union, you have to fight for these things on your own and we all know how hard that is!
Is that what the Conservatives are talking about? Bringing all Ontarians’ salaries down to the lowest possible level (and letting stockholders pocket the profit)? Who does that help? (The Conservatives’ corporate backers, who must love the concept?)