In June this year, Steelworkers from all across Canada join with LGBTQ2S+ communities to celebrate Pride Month. As a union dedicated to social justice, we have always supported equality-seeking groups in our union, our workplaces, and in society.
We applaud Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Since 2015, these provinces have extended their human rights laws to explicitly include gender expression and gender identity as protected grounds.
In addition, in June 2017, five years after gender identity and gender expression were added as prohibited grounds of discrimination in Ontario’s Human Rights Code, the federal government has added gender identity and gender expression to the Canadian Human Rights Act. The passage of Bill C65 later this year will further strengthen protections against harassment and violence against equality-seeking groups in workplaces under federal jurisdiction.
Since 2015, our union has supported four cases of members transitioning gender.
Improvement in protections for LGBTQ2S+ members is also reflected within our union itself. At the International Convention in August 2014, gender identity was added to the USW Constitution as a further ground of civil and human rights protection.
To continue the fight for equality for LGBTQ2S+ people, I urge you to:
In solidarity,
As Canada continues to face many challenges on the global scale, continued progress on issues affecting Indigenous workers and communities must remain a priority. In this context, the Steelworkers Humanity Fund (SHF) has been building partnerships with Indigenous nations across Canada, reflecting our union’s commitment to reconciliation. Through this work, the SHF connected with the […]
Strike began Saturday for 1,200 workers at Canada’s largest open pit mine Logan Lake, B.C.—A strike at Teck Resources Highland Valley Copper Mine, Canada’s largest open pit mine, entered its first full week on Monday. More than 1,200 workers, members of the United Steelworkers union, walked off the job on Saturday. The previous contract expired […]
PLANTAGENET and ALEXANDRIA, Ont. – The United Steelworkers union (USW) is urging the provincial government to reject a proposed closure of long-term care (LTC) homes in eastern Ontario and to instead modernize these essential facilities. As part of a public consultation process initiated by the Ontario Ministry of Long-Term Care, the USW has filed a […]