COPE President meets Jagmeet Singh

May 30 – The Fightback is On

 

Either we save our public medicare now, or we are going to lose it

Giant march & protest. Send a message to the Ford government & Ontario's Legislature that cannot be ignored.

In Toronto: Gather at 12 p.m. noon at the south side of Nathan Phillips Square across from the Sheraton, 123 Queen St. W. We will march to the Ontario Legislature at Queen’s Park which is in session — local Members of Provincial Parliament from across Ontario will be there.

There is a designated space at Queen’s Park for people with mobility issues who cannot join the march. Meet us at Queen’s Park in front of the Ontario Legislature. The march will arrive at Queen’s Park at 1 p.m.

Across Mid- & Southern Ontario: There will be buses/transportation to the Toronto protest. Look on the Ontario Health Coaltion website for details about buses and how to reserve a space or email [email protected].

In Northern Ontario (N. Ontario locations where it is too far to travel in to the Ontario Legislature):

Sault Ste. Marie: Gather at 12 p.m. noon at Roberta Bondar Pavilion for protest and march. Contact Al Dupuis at the Algoma Health Coalition [email protected].

Thunder Bay: Gather at 12 p.m. noon at mini Queen’s Park. Contact Jules Tupker [email protected].

Dryden: Rally outside of MPP Greg Rickford's office (429 Government Road) at 11:30 a.m. CDST

In Eastern Ontario

Ottawa: Gather at 12 p.m. noon at Faircrest Heights Park, 550 Smyth Road. Contact the Ottawa Health Coalition at [email protected]

Cornwall: Gather at 4 p.m. (note the time is different than elsewhere) outside MPP Nolan Quinn’s office, 120 Second St. W. Contact Louise Lanctot at [email protected] or Elaine MacDonald at [email protected].

COPE Fights for Homecare Workers

COPE joined other unions at Queen's Park to call on the Ford government to halt a plan that will cause further chaos in the home care sector – for both patients and workers. 

Bill 135 – rushed through the legislature with little oversight – demolishes existing governance structures and paves the way for privatization of vital health care services. 

The measure would dismantle the existing system of 14 Home Care and Community Support Services organizations across the province and turn them into one unwieldly structure. Unions have asked the government to consult with them on how to avoid the labour relations turmoil that will result. 

COPE Local 550 represents workers at Home Care and Community Support Services – Toronto. 

COPE Ontario Interim Director Glenn Wheeler (centre) joined OPSEU President JP Hornick, ONA President Erin Ariss, CUPE Ontario President Fred Hahn and NDP Health Critic France Gelinas at a media conference at Queen's Park.

 

 

 

COPE Ontario in the news

Please check out this article from Maclean's magazine from a former COPE Local 527 member who worked with Hamilton Wentworth District School Board as an EA that illustrates the many challenges working in the school board.

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Ontario Court of Appeals confirms Bill 124 is unconstitutional

Ontario Court of Appeals confirms Bill 124 is unconstitutional.

On 12 February 2024, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld a decision that the wage-restraint legislation known as Bill 124 was unconstitutional. In a majority decision, the court affirmed a 2022 ruling which found that Bill 124 interfered with the freedom of association guarantee under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Ontario Court of Appeal also found that, as a result of Bill 124, “organized public sector workers, many of whom are women, racialized and/or low-income earners, have lost the ability to negotiate for better compensation or even better work conditions that do not have a monetary value.”