The amendment is based on a motion, the first part of which, I fundamentally disagree with. The motion addresses the study of the labour shortages and workers' conditions within the care economy in relation to health care workers, personal support workers and child care workers.
As everyone knows, health care workers and child care workers have been on the front lines since the pandemic began. They deserve our utmost respect, and I am concerned about what happens to them. In my view, though, responsibility for this study doesn't rest with the federal government. Labour shortages in the health care and child care sectors, whether we are talking about personal support workers or nurses, are entirely the responsibility of the provinces. It's not the role of the federal government to study such issues.
I could speak at length about the situation in Quebec. We now have action plans addressing the labour shortage. The whole issue comes down to the working conditions that have been negotiated and broader public service planning, areas where the federal government has no business telling the provinces what to do. Every province has its own jurisdiction when it comes to issues affecting workers, and I am not in favour of a study on a labour shortage in a sector that is not the federal government's responsibility.
I cannot support the amendment because it is based on a motion that deals specifically with the care economy. I urge the committee members to consider the full impact of this motion. I don't think we would be helping to make any headway by studying matters beyond our purview, in other words, the conditions of workers in the provinces' care economies. That is not at all our job. Child care systems vary from province to province, as do health care delivery models. In Quebec, the issue revolves around attracting and retaining workers, a matter that is largely negotiated by sector stakeholders, major labour unions and the health ministry. Who knows where the study would lead us—a study that is wholly outside our domain. It is clearly the domain of Quebec.
I realize the labour shortage is hurting major sectors and businesses, as evidenced by a study from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business and today's report from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. We all know the transportation and food service industries have been hit hard, among others. Our goal should be to conduct an impact study to determine how Canada's labour shortage in major sectors is affecting the Canadian economy. That is the issue we should be studying, not matters that fall entirely within provincial jurisdiction.
I cannot support this amendment because it flows from a motion I fundamentally disagree with.