Precarious work barely registers in campaign
Only NDP, Greens are addressing the issue of steadily declining job quality, labour expert says
Sipho Kwaku has been helping people into jobs for over a decade. Nowadays, though, he feels lucky to land someone a $15-an-hour gig.
“People are looking for opportunities,” said the head of WoodGreen Community Services’ employment programs. “What are they seeing right now? They’re seeing part-time. No benefits. There isn’t a lot of hope amongst the folks we see walking through our doors.”
Despite that reality, the conversation in this federal election campaign is still struggling to keep up, experts say.
“I think it’s fascinating in the U.S. in the presidential elections, you’ve got someone like even Hillary Clinton talking about the conditions that are driving inequality in the marketplace,” said Tom Zizys, Innovation Fellow at the Metcalfe Foundation and a labour market policy expert
“We’re not even having that kind of discussion in our federal election.”
Yet according to a CIBC index, job quality across Canada has declined steadily since the late 1980s, with the erosion of full-time growth in favour of part-time work and self-employment.
Benjamin Tal, the index’s author and deputy chief economist of CIBC World Markets, says the shift toward this kind of employment, which brings in less income than stable, full-time work, is part of a decadeslong downward trend rather than the result of a single government’s set of policies.
But Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives economist David McDonald argues that Conservative Leader Stephen Harper’s decade-long jobs record has been lacklustre at best.
“Average wages have been going up but they’ve been drawn up by the high end,” he said.
“We just haven’t seen any real change in median wage since about 2007/2008.”
In Toronto, Canada’s urban centre, over half of the population is now in some form of precarious work. Studies show that Ontario alone has seen its low-wage workforce skyrocket by 94 per cent.
Nationally, unemployment rates have dropped — but only because many workers have given up looking for jobs.
But on the campaign trail, a relative silence has prevailed on the subject of precarious employment, according to York professor and labour expert Steven Tufts.
The predominant focus of the major parties, he argues, has remained on job numbers, the middle class (for example, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau’s pledge to cut taxes for this group) and Canada’s beleaguered manufacturing industry.
One exception has been the NDP, which recently announced a set of measures it says are specifically geared to tackling precarious employment — including easing eligibility requirements for employment insurance. While in opposition, the party introduced a number of bills to directly tackle precarious employment.
The Greens have also articulated a progressive vision on precarious work, argues Metcalfe Foundation fellow Tom Zizys. Their platform includes a guaranteed livable income, stronger federal labour laws and supporting the provinces to strengthen their employment laws to protect temporary and contract workers.
And although most work-related issues remain in the hands of the province, the feds’ role shouldn’t be underestimated, says Kendra Coulter of Brock University.
She argues that workers in a variety of key sectors — including airlines, banks and communications — would benefit from the NDP’s pledge to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. When the federal government takes leadership on labour matters, it can also have a trickle-down effect on the provinces, adds York University’s Tufts. Beyond that, experts say there are a number of areas where the federal government could intervene to improve the overall quality of working life.
McDonald says that one important intervention would be reversing successive cuts to employment insurance — a vital lifeline, particularly for those stuck between temporary or precarious jobs.
“Coverage is under 40 per cent nationally,” McDonald said.
“Boosting coverage rates so that 60 to 70 per cent of unemployed people actually get a cheque from EI can make a big difference in terms of transitioning from one job to another.”
Infrastructure spending, done right, could also help create good quality jobs, he added. The Liberals have already come out swinging here, promising to spend $10 billion a year on infrastructure over the next couple of years.
But, Zizys cautioned, such investments should come with strings attached — like community benefits agreements to make sure those who need a decent income and job training the most benefit from the projects.
Tufts said federal leaders should also take a hard look at affordable child care, which would help bring stability to parents in precarious or lowwage jobs. This has already become a staple of the NDP’s campaign, which advocates for nationwide $15-a-day child care.
“The benefits of national affordable child care for parents and children are well-known, but these programs also create good jobs,” Coulter added.
Even if tackling precarious employment means casting the policy net wide, WoodGreen’s Kwaku argues that it is essential to restore dignity to work.
“Part of the biggest pieces of sustaining our dignity is being productively engaged,” he said. “And I don’t mean at $12 to $15 an hour.”
“Average wages have been going up but they’ve been drawn up by the high end.” DAVID MCDONALD ECONOMIST, CANADIAN CENTRE FOR POLICY ALTERNATIVES