(The following article is from the June 16-30, 2009, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $25/year, or $12 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $25 US per year; other overseas readers - $25 US or $35 CDN per year. Send to: People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133 Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)

PV Vancouver Bureau

     Another 42,000 jobs were wiped out across the country during May, as the official measure of unemployment hit 8.4%, an 11-year high mark. In total, about 400,000 jobs have been lost since last October, and 1,548,400 Canadians are jobless, an increase of 34.5% during that period. The news that one Canadian worker in 12 is out of a job stands in stark contrast to recent headlines claiming that "the worst of the recession is over."

     The most concentrated job losses are in the manufacturing sector. Goods-producing industries employed 66,000 fewer people in May, while services saw an increase of 24,200. Once again, the worst news came in Ontario, where new auto sector layoffs pushed the provincial unemployment rate to 9.4%, the highest in 15 years.

     Since October, Ontario's employment has fallen by 3.5%, or 234,000 jobs. Ontario accounts for 39 per cent of the Canadian workforce, but 64 per cent of the recession's job losses. Manufacturing employment in Ontario declined by a stunning 58,000 in May, bringing losses since October to 186,000 jobs, or 9.4 per cent in just seven months. There are now only 778,000 factory workers in Ontario, the lowest since the 1970s, down from 1.1 million as recently as 2002.

     Other provinces hit by steep increases in unemployment during May included Newfoundland (up to 15.1% from 14.7% a month earlier), Prince Edward Island (13.1%, up from 12.4%), and Alberta (up to 6.6% from 6.0%.)

     Youth and students looking for summer jobs are also suffering. The unemployment rate for workers aged 15 to 24 neared 15% in May; for students in the 20-24 years bracket, the unemployment rate was 18.3%, up from 15.4% in May 2008. Compared to 2008, student employment in May was down 59,000 full time positions, and the participation of these students has fallen to 68.6 per cent from last year's 75.2 per cent.

     A typical response from the corporate sector was reported in the Globe and Mail, which gave this viewpoint from Stewart Hall, economist for HSBC Canada: "While the Canadian goods sector has been bearing the brunt of the economic restructuring, part two of the Canadian employment picture is perhaps some element of a service sector restructuring... Some right-sizing of service sector capacity in keeping with the overall theme of recession would not necessarily be out of place."

     Such baffle-gab about "right-sizing" rarely touches on a critical question: how to survive on part-time work. Since October 2008, 406,000 full-time positions have been eliminated from Canada's job market, a contraction of 2.9 per cent, including 59,000 full time jobs in May. Part-time work has increased 1.4 per cent during that time.

     Responding to the latest statistics, Canadian Labour Congress President Ken Georgetti said the Employment Insurance program must be improved to protect workers, their families and communities from the worst economic crisis in a generation.

     "We have now lost 406,000 full-time jobs since October 2008, and 1.55 million Canadians are unemployed," Georgetti said. "Forecasts are that the unemployment rate will continue to increase over the next 12 months and a lot of Canadians without work will be left to fend for themselves. The Harper government has to fix Employment Insurance now."

     According to Georgetti, only 46.8% of unemployed workers were actually receiving EI benefits during March. "This is a scandal," he said. "These workers contributed to Employment Insurance in good faith and now they are being left to fend for themselves. They will not be able to take their kids on a holiday this year or send them to summer camps, and when families don't have money to spend the entire community feels the pinch."

     He also noted that the Harper government has a $57 billion EI surplus but is downloading the costs of unemployment to provincial taxpayers, when those workers have already paid for EI through their premiums.

     The CLC is working with the Toronto and York District Labour Council and the Good Jobs For All Coalition to mobilize a mass rally in Toronto on June 13. Starting 1 pm that day at Metro Hall, the demonstration will demand to "fix Ei and protect pensions."

     The Labour Congress wants Parliament to provide regular EI benefits on the basis of 360 hours of work, no matter where people live and work in Canada, to make all workers eligible for up to 50 weeks of EI benefits, and to raise benefits immediately to 60% of earnings calculated on a worker's best 12 weeks of earnings.