Workers in this country have been dealt a raw deal for decades, while the bosses rake in record profits on the backs of the very people who keep this economy running. We’re told to work harder, hustle more, and yet, despite juggling multiple jobs, too many of us still can’t make ends meet. We work hard, but housing, groceries, and other essentials slip further out of reach. This is the grim reality for workers across Canada today.
Decades of austerity and social service cuts, driven by Conservative politicians, have devastated working people. These same politicians — like Pierre Poilievre — then turn around to play the everyman, like wolves in sheep’s clothing, telling you to blame your neighbours and progressives for the fallout — while they subsidize their rich friends, sell off public assets, and suppress your wages.
Conservatives never let a good crisis go to waste. Like former Ontario Premier Mike Harris before him, Poilievre says he stands for “common sense” policies — less bureaucracy, more trades, more homes. But let’s be clear: Poilievre, a career politician, wouldn’t know what common sense for workers looks like. His brand of “common sense” is a recycled playbook from the Stephen Harper and Harris days, where the rich get even richer, and the rest of us are left scrambling to survive.
When Conservative politicians get into power at all levels of government, they always go after workers’ rights. Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he’s “for the people,” but still tried to strip education workers of bargaining rights in 2022. Now, Ford attacks workers by privatizing health care, “liberalizing” alcohol sales, shutting down the Ontario Science Centre, and giving a foreign spa a 99-year private lease at Ontario Place.
At the city level, Conservative-backed Toronto Councillor Brad Bradford says he’s a “community builder,” but supports open tendering that sidesteps union labour and undermines the BOSTA Act. This puts workers and communities at risk by enabling billionaire developers to exploit unlicensed young workers. IBEW Local 353 is currently fighting against developers hiring non-union labour because of Ford’s failure to enforce worker protection regulations. Now, we face Poilievre, ready to drag us back to the worst days of austerity and anti-labour legislation on a national level.
That’s what we’re up against.
And let’s not pretend that the federal Liberals have done enough to push back against this. The austerity agenda has lasted decades because, at every turn, our political leaders have failed to stand up for the people who make this country run. While there have been improvements to worker’s rights with the passing of national anti-scab legislation, the Liberal government needs to do better to stand on the side of workers — the recent national CN/CPKC Rail lockout is proof.
It’s time for a different kind of common sense — one that’s rooted in solidarity and focused on the common good. It’s common sense to fight for living wages, affordable housing, and strong public services. It’s common sense to demand that the people who build our communities, care for our loved ones, and keep our economy going, are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.
We’re not going to go back to the days when workers were disposable, and the rich got all the breaks. We’ve seen what that looks like, and we won’t stand for it. We marched this past Labour Day to remind the bosses that we are here, we shape our own future, and we are never going back. The future belongs to those of us who believe in fairness, justice, and equality for all. And together, we’re going to build that future — one that works for everyone, not just the wealthy few.
