Bruske on pre-budget measures: When government listens to workers, we see progress

OTTAWA—Canada’s unions welcome today’s pre-budget measures that recognize the essential role of workers in building a stronger, fairer economy. These investments show that when government listens to working people, we can make real progress together.

Doubling the Union Training and Innovation Program is a smart investment in Canada’s future. Unions deliver the most comprehensive, advanced, and high-quality training in the country and provide direct pathways to good union jobs. With this expansion, we can train the skilled workers Canada urgently needs to meet our infrastructure, housing, and clean-energy goals.

The new Hero Tax Credit for personal support workers will deliver long-overdue relief to some of the lowest-paid yet most essential workers in our health-care system. These workers care for people through the hardest years of our lives, and they deserve real recognition and respect.

We also welcome the consultation on restricting non-compete clauses, and would like to see greater steps toward fairness in the workplace, including strengthening workers’ ability to form unions, raise wages, and strengthen the quality of their jobs.

Finally, the $97-million fund for faster foreign credential recognition — especially in health care and construction — is a practical and positive measure that will help ensure newcomers can put their skills to work sooner.

These measures signal a shift toward putting workers at the heart of Canada’s economic strategy. Canada’s unions will work with the government to ensure we can build on this momentum by investing in good union jobs, expanding public services, and ensuring every worker shares in the prosperity they help create.