Tell us about your bad job: February Workers’ Story Forums

January 11th Bad Job Story

If you missed our workers’ story forums in October, four more are coming up in February throughout Metro Vancouver. Please click here for our event poster and share it widely.

Unpaid wages? Unpaid overtime? Employer taking your tips? Unfair firings?

Tell us about your bad job.

Unfair treatment of workers is all too common in British Columbia. Few people know their rights, and getting justice from a bad boss can be nearly impossible. The BC Employment Standards Coalition is campaigning for better employment laws and stronger enforcement for all workers.

Join us to share your story. You can tell us about a current problem or even something that
happened within the past 10 years. You can also learn about your workplace rights under the Employment Standards Act and other BC laws. If your case involves a legal violation, we will offer advice and can help you to start a complaint. Interviews will be done by experienced advocates. You can choose to tell us your name and the name of the employer, or choose to be anonymous.

****Please note an update to the room at Vancouver Community College on 23 Feb (the poster and graphic below are incorrect): the new room is 300A.

february-2017-workers-story-forums

Op-ed on BC migrant worker labour rights and protections in today’s Vancouver Sun

Two of of our Coalition members, Anelyse Weiler and Dr. Gerardo Otero, co-wrote an op-ed that was published in today’s Vancouver Sun. This issue is particularly pertinent in light of the Canadian Border Services Agency raids on construction workers in Vancouver this week.

The op-ed focuses on the need to enforce existing labour safety and health standards for precariously employed migrant workers in BC, and also on the need to provide opportunities for permanent citizenship for all “guest” workers. Citizenship certainly wouldn’t resolve all issues of inequality and labour safety for migrant workers. Nonetheless, it’s a practical step that would go a long way toward reducing the systemic exploitation of this group of workers, who contribute tremendously to our collective well-being (and pay taxes).

BC’s spring election is an opportunity to let provincial decision makers know that you want to see basic labour rights for all workers strongly integrated into our employment system. The BC Employment Standards Coalition just released a comprehensive set of proposals, including model legislation, to promote rights and protections for the province’s migrant workers. Please help us share these proposals with your MLA, and let decision makers know how the provincial government can help reverse a trend that would exacerbate economic inequality in Canada as a whole.