1. Invest in Our Future: Infrastructure and Procurement
The federal government should, in partnership with the provinces and cities, launch a major multi-year public investment program which would create jobs now, promote our environmental goals and build new industries for the future. It should cover roads, sewers and basic municipal infrastructure; health and educational facilities; mass transit; passenger rail; affordable housing; energy conservation through building retrofits; and renewable energy.
The program would create many construction and technical jobs and, twinned to a Made in Canada procurement policy, would help support new jobs in manufacturing and services. Government contracts should promote a strong public sector, unionization and inclusion of women and workers of colour in good jobs.
2. Increase Access to Employment Insurance and Training
In a recession, even more workers, especially women and the working poor, will fall through the cracks, or receive inadequate benefits. Now is the time to implement labour’s agenda for EI reform. We need a uniform entrance requirement of 360 hours in all regions; benefits based on 60% of earnings over the best 12 weeks; and benefits lasting up to 50 weeks. We also need to increase access to labour adjustment programs and training so that workers can access the new jobs being created through public investment programs, sector strategies and public services investments.
3. Protect Workers’ Pensions
Pension plans and retirement savings have been hit hard by the economic crisis, underlining the need to expand public pensions and reduce reliance on financial markets for economic security. We should phase-in a doubling of the CPP/QPP and immediately raise Old Age Security to protect today’s and tomorrow’s retirees and reduce reliance on private pensions and RRSPs. Worker pension plans must be backstopped by a pension guarantee fund, such as exists in the U.S., and flexibility for employers sponsoring pension plans should not come at the cost of insecure pensions.
4. Save Good Manufacturing and Forestry Jobs
The federal government must invest directly in support of sector renewal strategies designed to save jobs and promote successful restructuring in hard hit industries such as auto and forest products through new investment in machinery and equipment, research and development of new products, and increased worker skills. We also need strategies and investments to support cultural industries, environmental technology, renewable energy and other promising sectors.
Renegotiation of NAFTA and other unfair trade deals should reverse our huge and growing manufacturing trade deficit. Strict limits must be placed on the export of raw resources.
The full text of the Labour’s Plan
