Recap + video recording from townhall meeting on tariffs

Last week almost 400 people joined the emergency town hall on tariffs & trade war to collectively understand the economic and political challenges facing us right now. 

As we navigate these uncertainties together, lay-offs have already begun and millions of workers remain at risk of losing their jobs. That means, many workers will not be able to afford nutritious food, safe housing, and pay for medicine, all of which will impact the health of individuals and families. 

Below is a summary of what we discussed at the town hall, followed by some actions you can take to advance worker-informed policies that would prepare us against a looming healthcare crisis.

SUMMARY

How tariffs will impact workers:

• U.S. tariffs will drive up the price of Canadian goods, reducing their appeal in the U.S. market. 
• With reduced demand, Canadian companies will be forced to cut costs—reducing workers’ hours, shutting down locations, and laying off staff.
• Canada’s resource and manufacturing industries that export to the U.S. (oil, gas, metals, vehicles, food) will be first hit, with a ripple effect on supporting sectors like finance, transportation, and professional services.
• Ultimately, no part of the economy will be untouched as job losses and shrinking incomes lead to reduced spending. Women, migrant workers, and racialized workers—who are overrepresented in these industries—will bear the brunt of these job losses.

Lessons from past emergencies:

• There is an urgent need for a government strategy that has learned from past economic crises to ensure that no one gets left behind, including migrants, misclassified workers, and those who cannot work. 
• The pandemic showed us that the Employment Insurance system was completely unprepared for the scale of job loss. And while the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) was crucial, far too many people fell through the cracks. We need income support to reach everyone. 
• The federal government’s “wait-and-see” approach falls short of assessing the gravity of the situation and offers no reassurance to workers facing job losses, rising food prices, rent hikes, evictions, and all the hardships we lived through during COVID-19 pandemic.

No One Left Behind campaign is calling for:

• $600 weekly income support for all and permanent improvements to Employment Insurance to make it accessible and adequate. 
• A stop to increases in the cost of rent, the price of food, and interest rates. 
• Increased investments in high quality public services like childcare, education, healthcare and transit.

The full No One Left Behind agenda is available here.

If you are curious about how the Canadian government can pay for this emergency preparedness plan, check out the presentation by economist Katharine Scott from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) here (47:30). 

How health workers can support a No One Left Behind agenda:

1. Send an email asking the government to act. 
2. If you are in a healthcare union, send email to [email protected] to request a sample resolution to get your local to endorse a No One Left Behind agenda. 
3. If you are seeing the impacts of poverty, precarious work, and low income in your patients, and would like to share in the media or social media in support of the No One Left Behind campaign, please reach out to us by emailing [email protected]!

I know things are tough right now. But if we can learn anything from the recent past, it is that strong movements can wedge open policy windows. Now is the time to link arms and show up for our communities. 

If you have any questions about the current political and economic situation or if you would like to chat more about the No One Left Behind campaign, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!