Union leaders across the country applauded the federal government on Thursday for contributing up to $3 billion to help boost wages for essential workers across the country in the COVID-19 pandemic — but they argue governments should allow those front-line workers to retain that higher pay once the public health crisis has passed.

“Many of these jobs are paid at a rate that is absolutely not commensurate with the value that they give to our community and we see this as a recognition of that,” said CUPE Ontario president Fred Hahn.

“We think that this should not be a temporary thing. This should be a permanent measure where enhanced funding is permanently provided.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the federal government has reached cost-sharing agreements with almost all Canada’s provinces and territories for the wage boost for essential workers. The deal will see Ottawa put up three-quarters of the cost, with the provincial governments footing the rest.

A news release from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) stated the government will provide up to $3 billion to support the wage top-ups.

“The bottom line is this: if you’re risking your health to keep this country moving and you’re making minimum wage, you deserve a raise,” Trudeau said during his daily news conference on Canada’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A few provinces already announced the details of their respective wage increases for essential workers, ahead of the prime minister’s confirmation of Ottawa’s support on Thursday.

Quebec announced a $4-per-hour pay hike for workers in private long-term care homes, as well as a $24.28-per-hour salary to attract new workers to fill in as attendants at the facilities. Ontario, British Columbia and Saskatchewan have since followed suit with similar programs.

Asked whether there’s an expiry date to the cost-sharing agreement, a PMO spokesperson confirmed the deal is related to the pandemic, but noted some provinces who already announced wage top-ups have specified dates until which the increase is effective.

Ontario, for its part, said its $4-per-hour “pandemic pay” increase would be valid between mid-April and mid-August.

“The $4 is the start of what the permanent wages of these front-line workers should be,” said Sharleen Stewart, president of SEIU Healthcare, a national health care union that represents more than 60,000 front-line workers.

“They still have a distance to go, in my opinion … $15, $16 an hour is not what kind of a living wage they should be having.”

“We will continually monitor and consult on the best approaches to supporting all Ontarians, including frontline workers,” press secretary Sebastian Skamski said in an emailed statement.

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“It’s also important to note that this pandemic pay timeline aligns with the federal and provincial declarations of emergency.”

Kevin Rebeck, president of the Manitoba Federation of Labour, said he hopes the federal government’s wage boost announcement is the start of a larger “transition” that will result in workers providing “critical services” receiving better compensation.

Several union executives acknowledged the provinces are all dealing with different circumstances, but argued that federal guidelines could still be helpful.

“For me, the key piece of this is that the $4-billion wage top-up really has to be for those that need it the most,” said Jerry Dias, national president of Unifor, Canada’s biggest private-sector union.

“I really think the money should be spent more on the low-wage earners to ensure that they have a decent standard of living.”

Other executives suggested that “clear parameters” from federal officials might help ensure some “consistency” across the provinces and territories.

“I think the intent of this program is to recognize and help those workers out in a financial way. …We should do that with some sort of consistency,” Rebeck said.

“I think workers from one region to the other, if they see that some are included there and not here, that’s not good for anyone and that’s not fair.”

“It would make it much clearer for Canadians to know from coast to coast what group of workers would get that money and more importantly, that they would be treated equally across the country,” said Hussan Yussuff, president of the Canadian Labour of Congress.

Labour issues extend beyond pay, unions say

Part of the objective in proposing a federal wage top-up was to encourage more essential workers to stay on job, even at the risk of their own lives, and to compensate them for recent orders in some provinces banning them from working in multiple facilities.

As more workers in long-term care homes have fallen ill, many facilities have been struggling to provide basic care for residents. Both Quebec and Ontario, where the problem is most acute, have requested help from the military.

In addition to the issue of pay, Hahn argued that post-pandemic, the federal government should create standards and give the provinces more money “to provide these services in a way that there is consistency across the country.”

“This isn’t only about pay. It is about the standard of the care that’s being provided in those settings, ensuring that workers have access to full-time hours,” he said.

“Part of the real problem that has been exposed here, that our union and others have talked about for a long time, is the reality of the casualization of work, that people are forced to stitch together two and three jobs just to make ends meet.

“That’s got to end.”

— With files from The Canadian Press

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