Madam Speaker, it is a privilege and an honour to rise to speak in the second hour of debate on my private member's motion, Motion No. 194.
Since the first hour of debate at the end of November, I have learned even more about Canadians' thoughts on precarious employment. I have heard from constituents who not only shared their personal stories but also their unique points of view on defining precarious employment. In late November, I had the opportunity to be part of a discussion hosted by the Pearson Centre's Year 4 Conference, where precarious employment was acknowledged across a broad range of industries and organizations. This diversity of experiences and different points of view is at the heart of why Canada requires a standard definition on precarious employment and its specific indicators.
In order to develop effective public policy, we must first have a clear, defined and consistent definition of precarious employment in Canada. Given that it is a priority of our government to make evidence-based policies that reflect the needs of Canadians, it becomes necessary to study and consult, to build a strong foundation of knowledge, so that we can truly understand and define precarious employment in Canada. It is important we work from a national, accepted definition of precarious employment, which applies specific indicators, in order to ensure continuity across this great nation.
I want to take this time to thank my colleagues who spoke to my motion and provided various points of view. I thank the member for Perth—Wellington, a current member of the HUMA committee, for his useful views on a potential direction for the study. I thank the member for Churchill—Keewatinook Aski for her continued work on this topic, the member for Guelph for adding substantive information to this debate, and the member for Mégantic—L'Érable, who did an excellent job speaking to my motion in his first English speech in the chamber during the first hour of debate. We may not agree on everything but we do agree a study is critical.
I would like to thank the speakers today who did a wonderful job in supporting my motion on precarious employment. I thank the member for Newmarket—Aurora. I thank the member for Foothills for his input. I look forward to his contributions as the vice-chair of the HUMA committee. I thank the member for Drummond for his remarks as well.
I was very humbled, bringing this forward, by the reactions I received from various people across the nation and from my own constituents. In particular, I would like to especially thank Ms. Jones, whose story I shared in the first hour of debate on my motion. I also want to thank and acknowledge various organizations in my riding that advocate for better employment options for individuals, as well as organizations that support families and a great number of people, organizations such as the Centre for Social Justice and Good Works, St. Vincent Place, the United Way of Sault Ste. Marie and Algoma District, Employment Solutions and the Sault Community Career Centre. Their work is so incredibly important to our local communities.
Unfortunately, too many Canadians are facing difficult circumstances and have too few options. My constituents work hard, Canadians work hard, and they deserve some stability for themselves and their families.
As I mentioned during the first hour of debate on Motion No. 194, there is a vast amount of research available on different aspects of precarious employment and what all this research shows us is that no one is immune to the effects of precarious work. This point bears repeating because any Canadian, no matter age, experience, socio-economic level, education or sector, can very easily find themselves in a position of precarious employment.
I respectfully call on all members of the House to offer their full support to Motion No. 194 so that we can better serve all working Canadians and their families.