Industry committee  No, first of all, it's absolutely ridiculous. We would never agree to end the pandemic pay. We have never agreed to a minuscule lump sum. The reality is that the pandemic is alive and well. If you look at the grocery stores, their profits have increased significantly during the pandemic.

Industry committee  First of all, I will argue one of the main reasons they gave the $2 is that it would have been more beneficial for workers to be on the CERB than go to work, but they went to work out of their commitment. The $2 can't go away. That's strictly it, but the recommendations have to be more full-time jobs, better pay.

Industry committee  The number one recommendation has to be to make sure full-time jobs are coming out of this sector. There has to be an easier mechanism for workers to organize.

Industry committee  First of all, it's an irresponsible statement by those who know better. They know the number of employees who are still sick. They know of their employees, but let me talk about mine. Right now we have over 20 workers in the supermarkets and over 15 in the warehouses who are off sick with COVID-19.

Industry committee  First of all, Michelle, thank you very much for your question. You're right, it's at times like this that I'm pleased there are moderate Conservatives who are looking at a discussion about workers as opposed to profits. On the question of whether the government been in contact with me or the leadership about the issue of personal protective equipment for retail workers, the answer is no.

Industry committee  No, the masks, clearly, and much of the protective equipment are being provided now by the employers, but it was incredibly difficult in the beginning because of the raw shortage. I think you'll find that one of the ironies of this is, as you walk into a Sobeys, Metro or Loblaws, they're now giving everybody who walks in masks, understanding that the pandemic is still alive and well.

Industry committee  Good afternoon, Madam Chair and members of the committee. It's an honour to appear today before this committee to discuss the needy and the greedy. Hundreds of thousands of workers in the retail sector across this country have lost their $2 pandemic pay as a result of the greedy, namely Metro, Sobeys and of course Loblaws and Galen Weston, with his personal wealth of $8.7 billion.

Human Resources committee  There can be, of course, a top-up of CERB of up to $1,000. However, they were very specific in the last communication on May 8 that no SUB could be used, period. Here's how ridiculous the ruling is. Generally workers would end up on EI to a maximum of $573.00 a week. In the auto industry, for example, we have workers who, over and above that, are topped up anywhere between $400 and $600 a week.

Human Resources committee  Therefore, child care is a good start.

Human Resources committee  That was a great question, because the federal government is going to have to provide much leadership on this issue, given that there are very few provincial governments that will. On the 10 paid sick days, I think it's importance is clear during this pandemic. If you take a look at the recent elections in Ontario and Alberta, you see that the first thing those governments did was to walk backwards on labour law reform.

Human Resources committee  It is absolutely the way of the future. First of all, this pandemic showed us how ill-prepared we were as a nation—and are—to take care of ourselves. We outsourced all of our personal protective equipment. At the end of the day, we were left scrambling for the vital resources to take care of ourselves.

Human Resources committee  They are more than ever.

Human Resources committee  We have over 350 women's advocates in a variety of Unifor workplaces across the country. I personally sit on the board of directors for Halton Women's Place, which has women's shelters, and I know that the shelters today are running at over 100% capacity. As a matter of fact, it's gotten to the point where we've had to rent hotel rooms and different stuff in order to keep women safe.

Human Resources committee  I think you will find out that there was a solution in play. The layoffs that were announced in Toronto were cancelled, and I fully expect that the layoffs announced out west will also be cancelled.

Human Resources committee  By the way, the majority of the layoffs came from the non-union newspapers. What did you do for them?