Act will introduce new council to bring together employees, business, Indigenous people, and environmental groups
The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), the largest labour organization in Canada, and Pembina Institute, a think tank focused on sustainable energy, have called on the Canadian government to pass the Sustainable Jobs Act.
In an article published in the Toronto Star, CLC President Bea Bruske and Pembina Institute Executive Director Chris Severson-Baker expressed the need for the immediate passing of the act.
“We face an existential climate crisis and a critical moment for our economy,” said the pair.
“If we miss the boat today, the opportunity to create good, family-supporting jobs in a low-carbon economy will sail right past us.”
The Sustainable Jobs Act (Bill C-50), which was tabled in the House of Commons last June 2023, aimed to facilitate and promote the creation of sustainable jobs and support workers as well as communities in the country while efforts towards a future with net-zero emissions are being made all over the world.
Canada ‘needs to protect good jobs’
Bruske and Severson-Baker cited a report by BloombergNEF which found that overall global investments in energy transition had reached $1.8 million in the previous year, which was a 17% increase year-over-year. With the industry seeing a competition in garnering investments in order to foster further sustainability, the pair asserted that the government must make a move.
“Canada needs to be smart and strategic to compete for investments, and to ensure those investments create and protect the good jobs that support communities across Canada. This is where the Sustainable Jobs Act comes in,” the pair said.
Job partnership council
The act will entail the creation of a Sustainable Jobs Partnership Council, which will make plans that will provide the country with an advantage in unlocking new opportunities for investments.
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“By bringing workers, businesses, Indigenous Peoples, and environmental groups together with governments behind coordinated action, we’ll show the world that Canada is ready,” the pair said.
“Passing the Sustainable Jobs Act and getting the new Sustainable Jobs Partnership Council working will deliver the message, loud and clear: Canada is a great place to invest, with workers who are second to none and ready to get the job done,” they said further.
The Canadian Labour Congress represents more than three million workers by bringing national and internation unions as well as provincial and territorial federations of labour and community-based labour councils together.
The Pembina Institute is focused on reducing the negative effects of fossil fuels as well as supporting a sustainable, safe, and clean energy transition.