SASKATOON – Saskatoon union workers make about $41.81 more, per day, than non-union workers, according to a new Canadian Labour Congress report.
That means an extra $9.3 million in the pockets of unionized employees.
“We have about 33 per cent of workers unionized in Saskatoon,” said Saskatoon and District Labour Council President Kelly Harrington.
“The big thing of course is we add to the tax base, so at a municipal level, that means we’re contributing to leisure centres and leisure passes, and the public transportation system,” she explained.
According to the report, women who belong to unions earn an average of $7.37 per hour more than women in non-unionized workplaces.
Many of the things unions fought for in the past are enjoyed by workers today, including minimum wages, overtime pay, and workplace safety standards.
But there’s still a number of people who are against unions.
“The arguments traditionally made by businesses like the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses are just that laws that allow people to unionize too easily can lead to competitiveness issues,” said U of S Political Science Assistant Professor Charles Smith.
Smith said this is particularly true for a number of mom-and-pop stores, who say they can’t afford to pay higher wages.
Workers at Canada’s only unionized Walmart in Weyburn voted to de-certify their union. The union argued the process was unfair but last week, the Supreme Court refused to hear its appeal.
“Walmart’s a notoriously difficult case study, because they have traditionally very much opposed unionization across every one of their North American plants,” said Smith.
Despite the opposition, unions here are ready to proudly wave their flags come Labour Day.
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