International Equal Pay Day
All workers have the right to equal compensation for work of equal value, regardless of gender. It’s easy to say, and easy to agree with, but not so simple to put into practice. Pay Equity in Canada Canada adopted the...
Category: Labour history
May: Asian Heritage Month
The labour heritage of Asian-Canadian workers is a lesser-known part of our shared history. Even many of our Asian-Canadian members might not have heard much about it. The Labour movement and UCTE could not be where we are today without...
May Day 2026
The fight for better working conditions never ceases. May Day is International Workers’ Day. It commemorates the Haymarket massacre: unions in the U.S. had set May 1, 1886, as their goal for achieving the eight-hour workday. A general strike was...
International Pay Equity Day
It’s 2025 and we are still working to end gendered pay inequity. Removing gendered divisions between workers is a core objective of labour – better equity leads to better unity, and vice versa. At the same time, it helps that...
Labour Day Check-in
Monday, September 1 is Labour Day. Each year we celebrate, commemorate, and march while looking to the fight ahead. Looking Back: Recent ups and downs So far, the Carney Government seems to be at least as willing as the Trudeau...
Rights, just not the Same Rights as Other Workers
Not every worker in Canada is a member of a union that allows them to be part of collective bargaining with their employer. Some workers in Canada are not even entitled even to minimum wages and other basic protections. But...
May is Asian Heritage Month
We salute our many members with Asian heritage, and we invite all members to learn and support Asian Heritage Month organizations and events in your community. We simply would not recognize the world we live in without the contributions of...
May Day 2025: continuing the fight for labour rights, justice, and equality
On May 1 we observe May Day, aka International Workers’ Day. The U.S.A. and Canada observe Labour Day in September, but May 1 is the world’s Labour Day — by and for the international working class. How Labour Day Began...
World Book Day: read our union’s history
United in Action profiles the UCTE from the beginning of Canadian public-service labour organizing to the release of the book in 2023. Strikes, conventions, and political milestones are featured in this history, but also an awareness of the day-to-day hard...
The Trudeau Liberals’ Mixed Record on Worker Rights
A new Liberal leader probably means an imminent election – or at least that’s the plan that was announced when Trudeau prorogued parliament in January. That brings an end to the session of Parliament. What have the Trudeau years been...