Blowing whistles and chanting slogans, CUPE members rallied in Regina to celebrate International Womens Day and protest the lack of pay equity legislation in the province.
More than 150 delegates from the Saskatchewan division convention gathered on the steps of the legislature to send a strong message to the new premier.
We have run out of patience. We want no more excuses and no more delays, said National President Judy Darcy, calling on the NDP government to live up to its promise to guarantee equal pay for equal work.
Promises do not pay the bills. We want money in our pocketbooks starting with this [provincial] budget, said Darcy.
Joanne Mountney, a Melville group home worker and member of CUPE Local 3481, told the crowd workers with community-based organizations are tired of working for peanuts.
Group home workers, and employees who work in child care, womens shelters and other community-based organizations, earn on average about $8 an hour.
We are worth more than that, and our members are not prepared to be silent any more, she said, calling on Premier Lorne Calvert to boost funding for wages in the upcoming budget.