Comments on: The Call for a Living Wage: Cross Canada Campaigns (Dennis Howlett) http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/ Sat, 22 Nov 2008 17:04:51 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.3 By: perry http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-233131 perry Sat, 19 Jan 2008 21:19:18 +0000 http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-233131 <p>min wage $12-14 an hour making ends meet, familys working at $8 an hour, trying to get, back to back shifts with your spouce, working in general jobs, sometimes 7 days a week, high inflation, gas, dealing with gov standards, price on this, that, what can you do, ontario province is for the rich and posh, the poor should move to new brunswick, where you can buy homes for 50 to 100k, or too calgary , where jobs are plenty and even a dishwasher can make 18hr, wonder why ? we know why (Harper/Bush/Iraq) dont we !!!!!!!</p> min wage $12-14 an hour making ends meet, familys working at $8 an hour, trying to get, back to back shifts with your spouce, working in general jobs, sometimes 7 days a week, high inflation, gas, dealing with gov standards, price on this, that, what can you do, ontario province is for the rich and posh, the poor should move to new brunswick, where you can buy homes for 50 to 100k, or too calgary , where jobs are plenty and even a dishwasher can make 18hr, wonder why ? we know why (Harper/Bush/Iraq) dont we !!!!!!!

]]> By: Tony Fantini http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-76319 Tony Fantini Mon, 15 Jan 2007 09:38:08 +0000 http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-76319 <p>Now, that a home sells for $300,000.00 (Average), no min wage person can afford one (even a two house hold income), unless both are employed part time. Why do homes sell so high now? Min wage today to support family, and live under a roof is very costly. Min wage today should be at $16.hour, and the feel keep getting higher as homes, rent goes up. A one room apartment (reasonable condition), costs up to $1200,00 month or live with bugs, and ready to fall building. I have with my wife and son, and landlord and tenants act did nothing. Tax payers waste of money. A person now a days should be employed 3-4 days a week and have fun the other days. Not live at their jobs over 40hours a week and get nothing out of it. People need to spend time with their families, friends more, socialize. Not apart from everyone. We live in cities now, not in farm houses anymore. We all need to slow down and take a deep breath and feel life. All this demands, threats from employers if quotes are not ment, seems like the last day is here tomorrow and on min wage. Slavery is here, and people are blind.</p> Now, that a home sells for $300,000.00 (Average), no min wage person can afford one (even a two house hold income), unless both are employed part time. Why do homes sell so high now? Min wage today to support family, and live under a roof is very costly. Min wage today should be at $16.hour, and the feel keep getting higher as homes, rent goes up. A one room apartment (reasonable condition), costs up to $1200,00 month or live with bugs, and ready to fall building. I have with my wife and son, and landlord and tenants act did nothing. Tax payers waste of money. A person now a days should be employed 3-4 days a week and have fun the other days. Not live at their jobs over 40hours a week and get nothing out of it. People need to spend time with their families, friends more, socialize. Not apart from everyone. We live in cities now, not in farm houses anymore. We all need to slow down and take a deep breath and feel life. All this demands, threats from employers if quotes are not ment, seems like the last day is here tomorrow and on min wage. Slavery is here, and people are blind.

]]> By: J. Boyden http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-556 J. Boyden Mon, 06 Mar 2006 01:51:51 +0000 http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-556 <p>Not ten, $12 an hour.</p> <p>Any campaign to raise the minimum wage – which legislates poverty in Canada – must be applauded. The loudest claps, cheers and chants should come from trade unions who need to play a leadership role in this fight.</p> <p>And a fight it needs to be. Coalitions are essential, but the tactic of lobbying is a weak strategy compared to mobilizing and protesting. Health care and many other services were not won by friendly visits to members of the legislature or provincial parliament. They were won by occupying government offices, pickets, and large vocal resistance.</p> <p>Such protest is part of our history as Canadians. Take the rebels of Ontario and Quebec that won some basic colonial democracy. Or Louis Riel. Or the general strike action of the 1970s. We can do it for Minimum wage, too.</p> <p>And yes, times change – for example, demand of $10 an hour is already out of date. A minimum wage (itself a indictment of the capitalist system we have) should put workers above the poverty line. In most parts of Canada, $10 an hour would either touch or go below the poverty line.</p> <p>For single mothers that drop would be extreme. The CCPA wrote, back in 1999, that $12/h would just touch the poverty line. Some Toronto writers have called for $15/h. As a minimum wage worker myself, anything sounds better than $7.75, but a demand like $12 packs more punch. This is after all a fight to put people before profits.</p> <p>Make it $12 an hour. Already, the Communist Party and Young Communist League have adopted these demands.</p> <p>Plus, there is a need for a guaranteed living income and massive full time job creation. Lowering the working week to 30 hours, with no loss in pay and services, is another mark worth fighting for, as is a Bill of Rights for Labour in the Constitution.</p> <p>Canada is a country where big business calls most of the shots. Democracy demands alternatives. Ultimately, the destruction of the capitalist system (which is the root cause of poverty, unemployment and low wages) and the creation of a socialist Canada, where the working people own the economy, is necessary.</p> <p>Things won’t stay the same. And the alternative – our current capitalist system continuing to spin in the direction of global ecocide, or thermo-nuclear war – doesn’t look very good.</p> Not ten, $12 an hour.

Any campaign to raise the minimum wage – which legislates poverty in Canada – must be applauded. The loudest claps, cheers and chants should come from trade unions who need to play a leadership role in this fight.

And a fight it needs to be. Coalitions are essential, but the tactic of lobbying is a weak strategy compared to mobilizing and protesting. Health care and many other services were not won by friendly visits to members of the legislature or provincial parliament. They were won by occupying government offices, pickets, and large vocal resistance.

Such protest is part of our history as Canadians. Take the rebels of Ontario and Quebec that won some basic colonial democracy. Or Louis Riel. Or the general strike action of the 1970s. We can do it for Minimum wage, too.

And yes, times change – for example, demand of $10 an hour is already out of date. A minimum wage (itself a indictment of the capitalist system we have) should put workers above the poverty line. In most parts of Canada, $10 an hour would either touch or go below the poverty line.

For single mothers that drop would be extreme. The CCPA wrote, back in 1999, that $12/h would just touch the poverty line. Some Toronto writers have called for $15/h. As a minimum wage worker myself, anything sounds better than $7.75, but a demand like $12 packs more punch. This is after all a fight to put people before profits.

Make it $12 an hour. Already, the Communist Party and Young Communist League have adopted these demands.

Plus, there is a need for a guaranteed living income and massive full time job creation. Lowering the working week to 30 hours, with no loss in pay and services, is another mark worth fighting for, as is a Bill of Rights for Labour in the Constitution.

Canada is a country where big business calls most of the shots. Democracy demands alternatives. Ultimately, the destruction of the capitalist system (which is the root cause of poverty, unemployment and low wages) and the creation of a socialist Canada, where the working people own the economy, is necessary.

Things won’t stay the same. And the alternative – our current capitalist system continuing to spin in the direction of global ecocide, or thermo-nuclear war – doesn’t look very good.

]]> By: B. Hawley http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-8 B. Hawley Wed, 14 Sep 2005 18:49:12 +0000 http://canadiandimension.com/articles/2005/05/01/27/#comment-8 <p>I cannot afford to subscribe but would like to be kept up to date on current issues, etc. Therefore, I sould suggest that you add an email subscription which might provide, for example, one full article & synopsis of other articles in each issue. This would serve 2 purposes, 1) permitting low income persons to "subscribe" & keep up with issues, and 2) it would keep CD alive in the minds of people who might subscribe to the print version at a later date.</p> <p>Hope this helps. B. Hawley Ottawa bk243@ncf.ca</p> I cannot afford to subscribe but would like to be kept up to date on current issues, etc. Therefore, I sould suggest that you add an email subscription which might provide, for example, one full article & synopsis of other articles in each issue. This would serve 2 purposes, 1) permitting low income persons to “subscribe” & keep up with issues, and 2) it would keep CD alive in the minds of people who might subscribe to the print version at a later date.

Hope this helps.
B. Hawley
Ottawa
bk243@ncf.ca

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