Supporting Their Essential Service: Healthcare Workers, Volunteer Firefighters, and Construction Workers
2023 Prebudget Submission to the Ontario Government
CLAC is pleased to participate in the prebudget process and offer recommendations for the 2023 Ontario budget.
Our recommendations can be summarized as follows.
Healthcare
1. Legislate and fund a minimum annual healthcare wage increase. This wage increase would be no less than the annual increase in minimum wage, as calculated in the Employment Standards Act, Part IX, Section 23.1 (4) (5).
2. Set a fair and equitable wage for personal support workers (PSWs) and registered practical nurses (RPNs) in the homecare sector that is at par with long term care home workers of the same classifications.
3. Abandon the Bill 124 appeal; or alternatively, exempt homecare, long term care, and hospital workers from the arbitrary Bill 124 to correct within-sector disparities that resulted from the uneven implementation of Bill 124,
4. Require WSIB coverage for workers in the retirement home sector.
5. Enhance the WSIB’s Loss of Earnings (LOE) coverage for injured or ill workers by 5 percent to 90 percent LOE from the current level of 85 percent LOE.
Volunteer Firefighters
6. Introduce and implement a volunteer firefighter tax credit that matches the existing federal tax credit of $3,000 and match any future federal volunteer firefighter tax credits.
Construction
7. Continue the Skills Development Funding Program.