Why Targeted Programs Benefit Winnipeg Learners

And that's how The Alberta Employee was born. That summertime, I also launched the, where I interview members of the working class about their life stories and their individual labour journeys.

Guiding minds

Now, let's get to the reason I am here today: labour rights, employee advocacy, and the existing landscape for Alberta's post-secondary employees. I graduated from what is now Lethbridge Polytechnic in 2001. I finished their multimedia production programme, and my practicum wound up turning into a full-time job, where I worked for 9 years before being laid off during budget plan cuts thanks to frozen operating grants from the provincial government at the time.

My first paid speaking gig was at Olds College. After my spouse got her master's degree, one of the top places to employ her to teach was what was then Red Deer College. Needless to state, I have an unique place in my heart for the colleges and institutes in Alberta.

How Targeted Programs Assist Winnipeg Learners

Because the UCP took power in 2019 under Jason Kenney, they've presented numerous pieces of legislation that have actually made things more tough for employees. The first modification was really introduced in their second costs, the so-called Open For Service Act, which worked in the summertime of 2019. This bill reduced the base pay for student employees under 18 from $15 an hour to $13 an hour.

On top of that, they haven't altered the adult base pay the whole time they've been in office, and now it's the most affordable minimum wage in the country, for the very first time in over a years. This is the 2nd longest duration because 1965 that Alberta minimum wage workers haven't seen a wage increase.

Prior to this expense becoming law, employees could bank their overtime hours at 1.5 times their worked hours. If someone worked 3 hours, they could bank those 3 hours, and then when they wanted to take it as time off, they could take 4.5 hours off rather of 3 hours.

After Expense 2 was passed, companies might offer the banked time as straight time, which motivated them to pay overtime, instead of permit workers to take the additional time off. Finally, Bill 2 reduced statutory holiday pay, particularly for part-time and casual workers. Prior to the bill, employees got vacation pay despite whether they worked the holiday and despite whether the stat vacation fell on a scheduled workday.

Planning for Success in the 2026 Regional Year

The following year, the UCP federal government presented Expense 32, otherwise known as the Bring back Balance in Alberta's Workplaces Act. This new legislation needed unions to now get specific consent from their members before they might utilize earnings gathered from dues for social or political causes. This increased the administrative concerns on unions, which implied extra expenses, and it restricted their capability to use funds for advocacy for the broader working people.

Before, employees could hold an accreditation vote simply 10 calendar days after they used to the Alberta Labour Relations Board for accreditation. This gives employers more time to unionbust.

Now, they can challenge procedural or technical concerns on the certification procedure itself, such as minor errors in the application, supporting files that were filed improperly, timing of the application, scope of which job titles are consisted of in the proposed bargaining unit, and whether the union used so-called browbeating to acquire support amongst the employees.

Regional Focus on Ingenious Childcare Approaches in Winnipeg

Red tape is merely a business-friendly euphemism for deregulation, which is nothing more than the removal of guidelines. Many guidelines fall into 3 camps: protect employees, protect the general public, and protect the environment. Eliminating these policies indicates increasing risk for workers, increasing risk for the general public, and increasing danger for the environment.

Particular to employees, it weakened work environment safety. Prior to the bill, joint health and wellness committees were compulsory in work environments with 20 or more employees and worksite health and security representatives were needed at worksites with in between 5 and 19 employees. Under the new expense, the requirements shifted to being risk-based, being necessary only in work environments with higher risk of mishap, injuries, or direct exposure to dangerous conditions.