PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU ANNOUNCED A WAGE TOP-UP ON THURSDAY FOR FRONTLINE WORKERS DEALING WITH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, BUT SAID IT WOULD BE UP TO THE PROVINCES TO DECIDE WHO GETS THE RAISE.
Provinces to decide who gets part of $4B fund
OTTAWA • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a wage top-up Thursday for frontline workers dealing with COVID-19, but said it would be up to provincial governments to decide who gets the raise.
Since the pandemic began, there have been calls to top up the wages of workers in long-term care homes, cleaners and grocery store employees who are risking their health and making minimum wage.
“We are relying on these workers now more than ever and we will be there to support them,” Trudeau said Thursday.
Trudeau said his government is putting up approximately $3 billion for the program, while the provinces are contributing another $1 billion.
He said who exactly gets paid and how much will be decided by individual provinces. “If you are risking your health to keep this country moving and you are making minimum wage, you deserve a raise,” said the prime minister.
Provinces that have the constitutional responsibility for health care negotiated the arrangement with Trudeau’s government.
“Right now, we are finalizing the details with the last provinces and I want to underscore this has been a truly collaborative effort,” he said. “Premiers from all across the country agree we need to support our essential workers.”
Since the provinces will be making the choices, Trudeau couldn’t say whether the topup would be for only healthcare workers or if grocery store employees and delivery drivers would also qualify.
“We have confidence that the provinces will determine exactly how best to help Canadians in this time.”
As many frontline workers in long-term care homes have become infected with the virus themselves or have opted not to go in to work, more than a thousand Canadian Armed Forces personnel have been called into support the homes in both Ontario and Quebec.
Ontario and Quebec have previously announced top-ups for workers in care homes and there have also been increases for workers in Saskatchewan, but not all provinces have followed suit.
Conservative health critic Matt Jeneroux said he is glad the Liberals finally announced a proposal to deal with this issue, but the details are going to be important.
“Conservatives appreciate the hard work that healthcare professionals are doing during this crisis and we must continue to provide them with the support and resources to do their jobs safely,” he said. “We look forward to seeing the details of the wage top-up proposal, since it is unclear how long support will be available.”
NDP MP Peter Julian said his party has been calling for a program like this since early April and is disappointed it took the Liberals so long to implement it.
“Frontline workers have been through a tremendous amount, you can imagine the pressures that are on them each and every day as they literally put their lives on the line,” he said. “They shouldn’t be worried about putting food on the table.”
He said there is a jurisdictional issue at play, but the federal government could have dealt with that by offering workers tax credits, a courage bonus, for working in long-term care.
Julian said the problem with running the money through the provinces is that it could mean more delays to workers who desperately need the cash.
“The announcement is welcome, but passing the buck to the provinces could mean further delays,” he said. “I am not convinced the frontline workers will be getting the money they so richly deserve.”
Julian said care homes and other facilities have been underfunded for years.
“What this has done has exposed problems that were already widespread in the system, particularly when it comes to seniors’ care. There weren’t adequate resources.”