Premier David Eby has issued the following statement marking Labour Day:
“Working people power the success of our province: farm workers, flight attendants, retail workers, clerks, custodians, truckers, teacher’s aides, first responders and so many others. In British Columbia, people are the economy.
“Today, we celebrate the incredible contributions of workers and the labour movement. Labour Day is an opportunity to remember that organized labour fought for — and won — many of the employment rights we enjoy today, such as maternity and parental leave, overtime pay and workplace safety standards.
“Our government is committed to making life easier for workers in this province. In just this past year, we increased minimum wage to $17.85 an hour, the highest of all the provinces in Canada. In April, we made changes to the Employment Standards Act that will eliminate the need for workers to get sick notes for short-term absences from work.
“That builds on our collective achievements, which include protecting workers with paid sick leave, returning thousands of health-services workers to the public system, and cutting child care bills by half or more for many working parents.
“In partnership with the labour movement, we introduced up to five days of paid leave per year for workers facing domestic or sexual violence and brought in pay transparency legislation to help close the gender pay gap. We made it mandatory for employers at construction sites with 25 workers or more to provide flush toilets, hand-washing facilities and clean washrooms, and we provided basic protections and minimum-wage measures for app-based ride-hailing and delivery workers.
“Democracies are built by the strength of workers. We give thanks to the working people of B.C. for their dedication to making our province a better and more prosperous place to live and work.”
“Happy Labour Day!”
Jennifer Whiteside, Minister of Labour, said:
“This Labour Day, I’m reflecting on the incredible contributions of workers throughout our province. As Minister of Labour, I’m honoured to stand with working people and help protect the hard-won progress made by unions and the labour movement. Together, we’re building safer workplaces and a stronger future for everyone in B.C.”