CANADA LABOUR CODE  Mr. Speaker, I want to underline that what we have heard from the other side was a need to bring more balance and fairness to the relationship between unionized employees and their employer. One thing we need to point out is that the Canada Labour Code review is best done by a tr

CANADA LABOUR CODE  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for his great speech and comments, his passion, and all the years of advocacy he has done on behalf of working people in his riding. I would like to give my colleague a few more minutes to comment on the theme of his speech around h

Standing Orders and Procedure  Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear what my colleague has to say about private members' business. For me personally, being a new MP, I think it is a shame that in a four-year term, I may never have a private member's bill come up for debate. I think what happens is that members

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, yesterday, for no reason, the government announced it would wait two more years before introducing pay equity legislation. The Canadian Labour Congress says: After all the expert testimony, and with the Task Force and Committee’s recommendations in hand, it’s una

Salaries Act  Mr. Speaker, I am going to follow up on my Conservative colleague's question and talk about the vagueness and some questions I still have, even after the speech, about what we are talking about today and voting on at a later date. First, what is the difference between the design

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, this government has acknowledged that pay equity is a fundamental human right, so why is it asking Canadian women to wait another two years? Enough is enough. The previous Liberal government shelved pay equity legislation in 2005. Women should not have to wait until

Salaries Act  Mr. Speaker, Bill C-24 is an interesting bill. Ostensibly, it sets out to address a gender wage gap in cabinet by doing two things: changing or limiting the current title of “minister of state” to “minister”, and then paying all ministers the same salary. It would also create thr

Salaries Act  Mr. Speaker, some of my hon. colleague's comments support what I was saying here. The point is that in order to keep that profile and in order to keep those economic development agencies a part of the government's policies and budget, those particular regions of the country nee

Salaries Act  Mr. Speaker, I am never going to stand up to say there is something wrong with paying people a fair wage, an equitable wage based on the effort, the scope, and the responsibility of a job. I know for a fact there are women who are working for less than men but with the same resp

Salaries Act  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member raised the issue of the two largest provinces in this country having pay equity. We heard from them at committee. It would not take two years to write that legislation. We have a lot of experience. As my colleague mentioned, making these women wait

Excise Tax Act  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Bill C-241, sponsored by my colleague from Saskatoon—Grasswood. The bill would amend the Excise Tax Act to allow for a 100% rebate of the GST for school authorities. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Alex Atamanenko, the f

Candidate Gender Equity Act  Madam Speaker, it is my distinct privilege to rise in the House today to speak in support of Bill C-237, sponsored by my colleague from Burnaby South. It is a bill whose time has come, and I encourage all my colleagues to support sending Bill C-237 to committee. Studying this bi

Labour  Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and the Liberals promised to be on the side of Canadian workers, yet in their first year, not only have the Liberals voted against the anti-scab legislation denying workers' rights to collective bargaining, they have also shelved pay equity until 2

Public Service of Canada  Mr. Speaker, the Liberals promised a sunny approach to our public service, but these workers have been waiting for more than two years for a contract. Respect for public workers is more than a slogan; the government has to show up. But so far the Liberals have come to the bargain

National Defence  Mr. Speaker, today is Rainbow Day on Parliament Hill, but the government has failed to fix many issues still facing members of the LGBTQ community. LGBTQ Canadians who served this country proudly as members of the Canadian Forces and were dishonourably discharged for being gay o