RadioLabourCanada

Canadian delegates to the Congress of the International Union of Food Workers (held in Geneva Switzerland June 13-16, 2023) condemned transnational corporations such as Fyffes for not respecting the rights of their workers.  They called on the government of Canada to ratify conventions of the International Labour Organization. The Canadian delegates who spoke at the IUF Congress were Kelly Tosato...

Microaggressions against racialized and marginalized people in the workplace need to be recognized and eliminated. This week, we speak to Marlihan Lopez, the community engagement and outreach coordinator at the Simone de Beauvoir Institute at Concordia University. Lopez is also a co-founder of Harambec, a Black feminist organization in Montreal. RadioLabour  is the international labour movement's...

The UN Declaration of Human Rights declares that labour rights are human rights. It is backed up by a declaration by the International Labour Organization which says that labour is not a commodity. Comments by the Chair of the ILO's Workers' Group, Catelene Passchier. Canadian unions are represented at the ILO by the Canadian Labour Congress.

Developments in machine learning and computer algorithms may be about to radically change many workplaces. Governments and employers need to share control with workers. Comments by the assistant general secretary of Public Services International, Daniel Bertossa. PSI affiliates in Canada include the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the BC General Employees' Union (BCGEU). RadioLabour...

Seventy-seven per cent of members of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (EFTO) say they have personally experienced violence or witnessed violence against another staff member, according to a survey conducted for the Federation. This week on RadioLabour, we share comments from Karen Brown, president of the ETFO. RadioLabour  is the international labour movement's radio service. It repo...

After a multi-year campaign by unions the Australian government has introduced legislation to make corporate operations in all countries more transparent and help stop profit shifting. An interview with the assistant general secretary of Public Services International, Daniel Bertossa. PSI affiliates in Canada include the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the BC General Employees' Union...

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) started a strike of 155,000 workers on April 19, 2023. It's demanding the federal government present a fair wage proposal plus other demands such as the right to work from home when possible. Tune to hear comments by PSAC president Chris Aylward and the leader of the federal NDP Jagmeet Singh. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio ser...

The Public Service Alliance of Canada has announced that its members have voted overwhelmingly to give their negotiating team a strike mandate. The union is calling on the federal government to return to the bargaining table. Comments by PSAC president Chris Aylward and Sharon DeSousa, national executive vice president. RadioLabour  is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports...

The global union Public Services International is helping its affiliates bring privatized public services back to public ownership. The PSI's Canadian affiliates include the Canadian Union of Public Employees, the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the National Union of Public and General Employees, NUPGE. RadioLabour  is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour u...

In 2020, the Beijing governments forced the Hong Kong government to pass a National Security Law. The legitimate labour confederation was shut down. The wife of the general secretary of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, Elizabeth Tang, was arrested March 9, 2023, when she visited her husband in prison. Elizabeth Tang is General Secretary of the International Domestic Workers Federation....

The International Trade Union Confederation has produced a report describing how automation, algorithms and artificial intelligence systems are effecting workplaces. It suggests what unions and government can do to help workers. The Canadian Labour Congress is an affiliate of the ITUC. RadioLabour  is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events  around the...

Many unionists are attending the 67th session of the UN's Commission on the Status of Women being held in New York until March 17, 2023. The focus of the conference is on recruiting women into STEM jobs - Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. But there is also the problem of women dropping out of STEM jobs because of sexism. Women leaving STEM jobs in Canada is discussed. RadioLabour  ...

More than 400 children have been killed by the war in Ukraine, hundreds have been wounded and thousands traumatized. Teachers are helping by purchasing generators for the schools and their bomb shelters plus organizing mental health programmes for the children. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events around the world with a focus on union...

The global unions UNI and IndustriALL created a successful programme to protect garment workers in Bangladesh after the Rana Plaza disaster which killed 1,200 mainly young women and wounded 2,400 others. The programme, called the International Accord for Health and Safety in the Garment and Textile Industry, has now been extended to Pakistan. A RadioLabour interview with the Deputy General Secreta...

The Canadian Labour Congress was instrumental in getting the International Labour Organization to adopt a new global labour law which is aimed at eliminating violence and harassment at work. Canada is the 25th country to ratify Convention 190 of the International Labour Organization. A RadioLabour interview with CLC Executive Vice-President Siobhán Vipond. RadioLabour is the international labour m...

Karen Brown, the president of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario, has been named one Canada's most accomplished Black women leaders. In an interview with RadioLabour, she talks about the challenges facing young racialized women in the labour movement. Her message: find your passion and get involved in the union. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It repor...

Being a teacher in an underfunded system while being poorly paid and resourced can be heart breaking. Education International, which has affiliates in Canada, has started a global campaign to  Go Public! Fund Education. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events around the world with a focus on unions in the developing world. It partners wit...

When Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022, thousands of Ukrainian seafarers were on their vessels away from their families. Transport unions helped by flying families out of the country, purchasing supplies and providing mental health counselling for the children. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events around the world with a focus o...

The British government has adopted legislation demanding  during a strike. Employees designed under the Strike – Minimum Service - Bill  for striking. Plus: How the right wing in the US is attacking public education. And the LabourStart report about union events. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events around the world with a focus on uni...

A report by the National Union of Journalists in the United Kingdom shows that especially in the past two years violence against women journalists has been increasing. NUJ General Secretary Michelle Stanistreet reports on what the NUJ is doing to help. The NUJ is working with Canadian media unions to develop a safety kit for women journalists and is creating a database to provide real time reporti...

The UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that everybody has the right to join a union. The Declaration was written by the Canadian legal scholar John Humphrey who was the Director of the UN's Human Rights Division. Its proclamation is celebrated every December 10th.   

What happens if Twitter shuts down? Or, becomes even more noxiously right-wing? LabourStart - the labour movement's news and campaigning service - has produced a programme exploring what unionists can do if Twitter closes or Elon Musk uses it to promote racist, misogynist, anti-LGBT+ and antisemitic views. "Musk, himself, is not neutral. He doesn't pretend to be neutral. Lots of these tech billion...

Labour unions in the global south are calling for a just transition to more sustainable economies through education. A report from the International Trade Union Confederation in the Asia-Pacific region. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events around the world with a focus on unions in the developing world. It partners with rabble to provi...

USW registers complaint against $1 per hour garment worker wages The United Steelworkers union in Canada has registered a complaint with the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) alleging that Mark's and its parent company Canadian Tire is failing to protect the human rights of garment workers in its supplier factories citing the case of Bangladeshi garment workers who do not ear...

The International Trade Union Confederation - the ITUC - is calling for a new social contract and wealth distribution at its 5th World Congress in Melbourne, Australia, Nov. 17-22, 2022. Many Canadian unionists are participating in the Congress activities. RadioLabour is the international labour movement's radio service. It reports on labour union events around the world with a focus on unions in...