Dear Sisters, Brothers and Friends,
Today, I was proud to take part in a major workplace health and safety announcement by NDP Minister of Labour Malaya Marcelino that will literally save lives.
The MFL, along with affiliates Heat and Frost Insulators Local 99 and LiUNA 1258, have been lobbying for years for Manitoba to have new rules in place to require employers to ensure all workers who deal with asbestos complete mandatory training standards, and to ensure that all companies that do asbestos abatement and remediation be certified with the province.
Diseases caused by exposure to asbestos remain Manitoba’s number one occupational killer. An average of 6 Manitobans die every year as a result of diseases they have because of exposure to asbestos at work.
Shockingly, even with all that we know about the dangers of asbestos, Manitoba has long had woefully inadequate rules to protect workers who do asbestos removal and remediation. For example, while there was a general requirement in the Workplace Safety and Health Regulation for employers to ensure that those working with asbestos be trained, there were absolutely no mandatory requirements for what that training should include and who is qualified to deliver it.
Well, those days are over.
Owing in part to the provincial committee tasked with reviewing the Workplace Safety and Health Act, the Kinew government has now strengthened our workplace health and safety regulations to clarify responsibilities, improve training and strengthen enforcement to protect workers who deal with asbestos work by:
- requiring anyone performing asbestos work meet the mandatory training standards developed by the province and be certified;
- requiring employers who do asbestos work to register so Manitobans can easily see who is qualified,
- setting clearer responsibilities for employers and building owners, and
- giving safety officers the tools to verify asbestos work is being done safely.
The government is giving employers until July 1, 2027 to be fully compliant with these new rules. You can read the province’s news release for more information.
This is literally a life and death issue for workers, and I want to thank the advocacy work of the Heat and Frost Insulators Local 99 and LiUNA 1258 as well as the union representatives on the province’s Workplace Safety and Health Act Review Committee for pushing for these much needed changes.
We are stronger together.
In Solidarity,
Kevin Rebeck
President of the Manitoba Federation of Labour
Subject: PC bill puts WCB payouts to employers ahead of prevention
Dear Sisters, Brothers and Friends,
The Manitoba PCs might have a new leader, but they are up to their same old tricks when it comes to trying to screw over working people.
Today, Obby Khan’s PCs introduced legislation that would require the WCB to payout surplus funds to employers when the WCB’s surplus hits a certain level. As Manitoba’s unions have long advocated, WCB surpluses would be put to much better use if they were devoted towards preventing workplace injuries and improving health and safety instead of lining the pockets of employers.
There are three main problems with what the PCs are calling for:
1. Manitoba already has the lowest WCB premiums in the country, and we’ve had the lowest premiums since 2018. Over the last six years, the WCB has distributed more than half a billion dollars in payouts to employers in what it has called “surplus funds”. These so-called surplus distributions to employers have been paid out without any consideration to the effectiveness of an employer’s injury prevention program or their health and safety record. Imagine how half a billion dollars could have been better spent investing in injury prevention programs or better supporting workers who are hurt on the job. Given this context, the idea that employer payouts should be permanently legislated is just plain wrong.
2. Manitoba workers continue to suffer 25,000 workplace injuries and around 20 workplace fatalities each year. And workplace injuries related to violence have increased by an incredible 40% over the last two years. After steady reductions in Manitoba’s time loss injury rate over many years, that progress has now stalled out. In fact, the time loss injury rate is now worse than it was five years ago. This shows a clear need to invest in preventing workplace injuries and improving health and safety, rather than the PC plan to hang a “Mission Accomplished” banner.
3. The WCB continues to fail to adequately support workers who suffer mental health injuries on the job. In its first two years, the WCB’s psychological injury coverage policy has provided coverage for fewer than five workers who applied for support due to injuries suffered from burnout/excessive workload. And the WCB doesn’t even cover all workplace mental health injuries that Manitobans experience. The MFL is currently running a public awareness campaign calling on the provincial government to make it the law for the WCB to cover all workplace mental health injuries, just as it does for physical injuries. WCB resources should be devoted towards helping workers who are falling through the cracks, not employer payouts.
While I am disappointed that the Manitoba PCs want to stand up for their corporate friends instead of working people, I have to say that I’m not surprised. But thankfully, as an opposition bill it has little chance of passing into law.
In Solidarity,
Kevin Rebeck
President of the Manitoba Federation of Labour
TO ALL CUPE CHARTERED ORGANIZATIONS
Dear Sisters, Brothers, and Friends:
Members of CUPE 1281-33 have been on strike since October 27, 2025. Their employer, the York University Faculty Association, came to the table with more than 100 concessions.
While many of the concessions were eventually withdrawn, these CUPE members are still fighting for key proposals that involve job security, health and safety, and harassment and discrimination.
We are appealing to CUPE chartered organizations across the country to send letters of support, and to give a financial contribution to CUPE 1281-33 members. Financial support can be sent to CUPE 1281-33, c/o Gavin Nowlan, Secretary-Treasurer, 25 Wood Street, Suite 102, Toronto, Ontario M4Y 2P9. Electronic funds can be sent to secretarytreasurer@cupe1281.ca.
In solidarity,
MARK HANCOCK
National President
CANDACE RENNICK
National Secretary-Treasurer
Sisters, Brothers and Friends,
MFL affiliates are invited to register for our upcoming Mid-Term Conference: EMPOWERING WORKERS, December 11–12 at the Union Centre (Winnipeg).
The conference aims to keep building a strong labour movement through ramped-up union organizing and meaningful membership engagement and activism.
Participants will learn about the latest and most effective strategies for engaging and empowering our members, and hear about groundbreaking union organizing success stories, including winning big against some of the most anti-union employers out there.
Registration is open and the final deadline to do so will be Friday, November 28, 2025.
Empowering Workers Conference
Dec. 11, Welcome reception at 5:00 pm // Program at 6:00 pm–8:30 pm
Dec.12, 9:00 am–4:00 pm
Union Centre, 275 Broadway, WinnipegHope to see you there!
In Solidarity,
Kevin Rebeck
President of the Manitoba Federation of Labour
****Thank-you 3473 for supporting wildfire relief in Manitoba.****
CUPE education workers raise serious concerns about staffing cuts in PVNC Catholic Schools
July 2
Thank you CUPE 3473 for supporting wildfire relief.
Get your free luggage tag from CUPE MB, just scan the code.
Sisters, Brother & Friends,
Manitoba’s NDP government has introduced legislation to provide greater transparency and accountability for taxpayers in cases where governments are considering public-private partnership (P3) funding models for public projects. Simply put, P3s are just another form of privatization of public assets. Evidence shows that they increase taxpayer costs and lead to lower quality and reductions in service levels — one only needs to read damning Auditor General reports from Ontario, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and B.C. on the subject to know that P3s are a bad deal for taxpayers.
Manitoba’s unions have long made it clear that if government explores P3s, it should provide clear, transparent information about the upfront and long-term costs of P3s, including apples-to-apples comparisons between the costs of proceeding with a P3 versus a traditional public procurement process. Manitoba used to have legislation that was created by the previous NDP government (The Public-Private Partnership Transparency and Accountability Act) that required governments to do this very thing, but it was repealed under Brian Pallister and the PCs in 2017.
We were very glad that the Kinew NDP government brought many elements of the old legislation back in its new bill. However, labour also raised concern about some potential loopholes that needed to be closed to ensure municipal and other projects were not exempted from the transparency and accountability requirements. Last night, leaders from CUPE, MGEU and I presented to the legislative committee that was considering the bill, and I am glad to say that government heard the voice of labour and amended the bill to close these loopholes.
Once it is passed into law, this legislation will make Manitoba a leader again when it comes to protecting taxpayers from governments funnelling public money into private hands through P3 schemes.
We wish to thank Hon. Mintu Sandhu, Minister of Public Service Delivery, for his leadership on this file, and for his openness to addressing labour’s concerns.
In Solidarity,
Kevin Rebeck
President of the Manitoba Federation of Labour
May 1, 2025
WCB surplus would be better spent on preventing workplace injuries and illnesses
Statement by MFL President Kevin Rebeck in response to WCB’s announced $122 million surplus:
With Manitoba’s worker compensation employer premiums already being the lowest in the country, Manitoba’s unions are disappointed that the Workers Compensation Board (WCB) is choosing to distribute $122 million in rebates to employers when there are very clear needs for the WCB to do much more to prevent workplace injuries and deaths.
This payout to employers is being made even though injury rates in Manitoba have increased over the last five years. And shockingly, employers will receive this rebate regardless of their safety record. This means that the workplaces that saw workers die on the job last year will receive the same kind of rebate as employers who take workplace health and safety more seriously. This provides no incentive for employers to improve their workplace health and safety standards.
This announced surplus is coming to light just days after the National Day of Mourning, where we marked 18 workplace-related deaths and 25,000 workplace related injuries suffered by Manitobans in 2024. Workplace injuries in health care and public services have been climbing steadily, requiring urgent investments in stronger prevention programs in those areas.
We are concerned that the NDP government is touting this payout as some sort of business support program. Last time I checked, the WCB does not have a mandate to provide business subsidies or economic development support. Instead, the WCB’s job is to keep workers safe and to support workers and their families with workplace injuries and deaths.
This surplus would be better spent on preventing workplace injuries, illnesses and deaths, as well as supporting injured workers.
Media Contact: Andrew Tod 204-391-0063 atod@mfl.mb.ca
CUPE Members with Temporary Immigration Status
The following letter and resources for CUPE members with temporary immigration status has been sent to all Manitoba Locals.
Sisters, Brothers, Friends,
On behalf of CUPE Manitoba, please share this notice with members of your Local:
ATTN: CUPE Members working with temporary immigration status/temporary work permits.
Are you an international student, on a temporary work permit, or waiting for your permanent residency application?
Do you have a temporary work permit that will expire soon?
Were you promised a path to permanent resident status that is no longer available?
CUPE fights every day for its members, including you.
The federal government, through the Ministry of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, made sweeping changes to immigration policies at the end of 2024. As a result, it is estimated that 2.3 million people will lose their work permits and risk deportation from 2025-2027.
These changes affect CUPE members who have temporary immigration status under programs such as the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the International Student Program.
Current members, with temporary work permits, may no longer be able to renew their work permits or have a pathway to permanent residency. If you or someone you know is affected by these changes, please contact Kelti Cameron, CUPE International Solidarity (kcameron@cupe.ca), and Emma Lui, CUPE Human Rights (elui@cupe.ca).
If you have an open work permit, you continue to have the right to work until it expires or while you have maintained status.
Some types of work permits require employer participation and letters from employers. Contact your union if you are having trouble accessing these documents.
If you are a member who is undocumented and working without status, you can still be involved in your union and we recommend you obtain legal immigration advice immediately.
STATUS FOR ALL
CUPE believes in status for all – this means no resident in Canada should have to live on temporary status. Temporary status creates precarity and exposes migrant workers to employer abuse. It is difficult to take action alone but together with other workers and organizations we can fight for change.
RESOURCES FOR WORKERS
CUPE has prepared resources for members working with temporary immigration status and temporary work permits. Please download the following resources and have available on Union boards in workplaces, and/or in the Local office:
Know Your Rights! A factsheet for workers:
https://cupe.ca/cupe-members-working-temporary-immigration-status-know-your-rights
A Solidarity and Action Guide: Temporary foreign workers in our Union:
https://cupe.ca/temporary-foreign-workers-our-union-solidarity-and-action-guide
For further information, or to share a direct link for your website, please visit:
https://cupe.mb.ca/members/resources-for-cupe-members-with-temporary-work-permits/