SoVote

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Dec/3/21 10:25:02 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-3

Madam Speaker, it is a beautiful place that I come from. Today is a very important day. As my colleagues have noted, we have been calling for this. Our leader has raised it in the House of Commons over 22 times. The NDP knows full well that people are going to work sick and are not getting the coverage they need. My colleague for Hamilton Centre just articulated that changes to the bill are needed. We have heard from many medical associations and employers about the requirement for a medical certificate from people who may have contracted COVID-19. The concern is that the power of requiring a medical certificate, regardless of the number of days, is going to be a barrier. This is something they are raising. Does the minister not believe that this requirement may decrease the demand for leave and increase the possible transmission of COVID-19, especially now that we are in a fourth wave and new variants are imposed upon us?

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Context: House Hansard - 10 - Dec/3/21

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Dec/3/21 10:35:49 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-3

Madam Speaker, I have to say it is a relief to finally hear that the Conservatives are on side for paid sick leave, because throughout the pandemic I asked the Conservatives repeatedly if they would support paid sick leave, and they flat out would not respond. People were going to work sick, making a choice between paying rent and buying food or going to work and possibly infecting their co-workers. The mental health stress was compounded on people who were going to work. The impact on businesses, organizations and government agencies has been tremendous. New Democrats are glad the Liberals are finally seeing the light a year and a half into the pandemic, but my concern is why it has taken so long for the Conservatives to stand up for workers' health. I really do appreciate the member talking about bereavement leave because we support that. There was a great HUMA report on bereavement, and we fully support the recommendations of that report, which even goes further than what the member is calling for, because no parent should be forced to go to work right after losing a child. Parents should have the time to deal with it. Again, why has it taken the Conservatives so long to stand up for the health of workers? Why have they been encouraging them to go to work sick or making a choice of paying their rent?

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Context: House Hansard - 10 - Dec/3/21

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Dec/3/21 12:11:35 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I rise to table a petition from constituents from the Comox Valley, Courtenay, Cumberland and Royston. The petitioners cite that farmers' markets are a key tool for a COVID‑19 recovery as small business incubators, domestic food system resilience and security builders, local economy community builders and farmers' market coupon programs are a key support for new and existing market development and their provincial associations. Farmers' market nutrition coupon programs help create food security and resiliency by giving vulnerable people access to healthy, locally grown foods and dietary education, while positively impacting the physical and mental health of participants by increasing the amount and diversity of the fruits and vegetables they consume. The petitioners therefore call on the Government of Canada to initiate a national matching program for all provincial farmers' market nutrition coupon programs across Canada that would match those provinces already contributing to their farmers' market nutrition coupon programs and encourage the provinces that do not have such a program to implement one by offering matching funding.

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Context: House Hansard - 10 - Dec/3/21

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Dec/3/21 1:32:08 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-3

Madam Speaker, at the beginning of the pandemic and throughout the pandemic, we heard very clearly from medical health professionals. They said that there are two things that are of top priority to protect the health of people in our communities: to get vaccinated and to have governments bring forward paid sick days, so that employees are not infecting colleagues when they go to work or having to make a difficult choice between paying their bills or going to work. It is great to hear the minister today talk about seeing the light and it is good to hear Conservatives, the official opposition who sat on their hands on this issue, finally getting on board. The CBC cited that 100,000 women have actually completely left the work force; 10 times that of men. We know there are many reasons for that, including the lack of child care and social supports for women throughout the pandemic that have surfaced. One thing we know, and hopefully my colleague can agree, is that many women will be coming back to work in precarious jobs. They are going to be coming back on contract. Many will not meet the 11-month threshold, so they will not be able to get a full 10 days of paid sick leave when they come back to work. Does the member agree with the fact that it is going to take workers 11 months to access the full 10 days of paid sick leave will disproportionately impact women even more? They are already facing challenges, while being at a greater risk of skills erosion and potentially hampering their ability to get rehired. Women will also have to face a transition to different roles in the economy, as a result of them disproportionately being impacted by COVID-19.

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Context: House Hansard - 10 - Dec/3/21

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Dec/3/21 1:52:47 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-3

Madam Speaker, we are very glad to see the Conservatives get on board now to support paid sick leave. One thing the member's colleague, the member for Parry Sound—Muskoka, talked about was bereavement. I really appreciate that because most of us cannot imagine the terrible grief of losing a child. It can lead to unresolved grief, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, addiction disorders, suicide even, homelessness, loss of education and loss of work. Right now, Canada does not have a national bereavement strategy like the U.K., the U.S., Ireland, New Zealand and other countries. There is no funding for designated supports for bereavement, including for organizations like Camp Kerry Society or local hospices, and the pandemic has made things even worse. Certain things need to happen. The government needs to allocate funding to exclusively support those who support people who are suffering from the loss of a child. Does my colleague agree that we need to extend supports for those grieving, those parents, and that they should not be at risk of losing their job and—

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Context: House Hansard - 10 - Dec/3/21

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Dec/3/21 2:18:17 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-3

Madam Speaker, my colleague and I usually talk about the protection of wild salmon together. It is nice to see him back in the House, and I certainly look forward to working with him on that. I am grateful to the Liberals for finally getting on board when it comes to paid sick leave. Today, the New Democrats have talked a lot about the gaps in leave for workers, and one thing that has come up again is bereavement leave. We do not have a national bereavement strategy. We know that people who lose a child, in particular, do not get enough time to grieve the loss. There are huge mental health and illness effects that come with losing a child if people are forced back to work. HUMA did a really important report on bereavement and recommended that parents should get 12 to 15 weeks of paid sick leave so they can deal with and grieve the loss of a child. Does my colleague agree that we need to do more to ensure there are better supports for parents who have lost a child?

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