Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he will be seeking ten days of paid sick leave a year for Canadians affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Trudeau says he will push all the provinces to agree.
“Nobody should have to choose between taking a day off work due to illness, or being able to pay their bills,” Trudeau said.
The Prime Minister says the Liberals will also work on long-term measures to make it easier for workers to stay home when they are sick. However, details will still have to be worked out with the provinces and private sector.
New Democrat Party Leader Jagmeet Singh has been pushing the federal government for two weeks of paid sick leave for the last few weeks. “Every worker should have access to paid sick leave. Workers need to know they have the ability to choose to stay home with pay if they are sick,” said Singh. “No one should be forced to make the impossible choice between going to work sick or not being able to pay their bills. Workers want to go back to work – we need to make sure they can go back to work safely.”
The NDP seemed to secure it’s demand after announcing they will support of the Liberal’s motion to limit sitting and votes in the House of Commons through the summer contingent on securing paid sick leave. Liberals and Conservatives have been debating this topic for weeks, with Conservatives believing that Parliament should be declared an essential service and sitting should return with up to 50 MPs.
The Liberal’s need just one recognized party to agree with them to continue Parliament’s current system and they seemingly have locked up the NDP with this recent announcement.
