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With the global economic crisis hitting working people hard in every part of the world, trade unions around the world organized events and activities on October 7 demanding decent jobs and full respect for workers’ rights.

In Canada, The Harper Conservativegovernment continues to expect working people to pay the costs of the bailouts of the financial markets that caused the recent economic crisis.  We are experiencing attacks on regulation, social protection and programs, precarious employment through part time, temporary work and the exploitation of temporary foreign workers and our right to unionize and strike has been undermined. 

There has been an extraordinary increase in the number of seniors working, up by 69 per cent in the past five years, far faster than their population growth of 17 per cent.  At the same time, there has been an absolute decline in the number of youth with jobs, while their population continues to grow.

Canada’s seniors are increasingly moving to lower paid “entry-level” jobs that young workers use to fill, increasing most rapidly in two of the lowest paid industries: retail trade and accommodation and food services, according to the latest CUPE Economy at work newsletter cupe.ca/economyatwork

The International Labour Organization has called for governments to introduce targeted employment measures to address the youth unemployment crisis, including public employment programs and job guarantee schemes.

Learn more about the World day for decent work at wddw@ituc-csi.org

  

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