Toronto – May 30, 2020 – Every year on June 1, UFCW Canada joins with advocates from across Ontario in support of Injured Workers Day by celebrating the health and safety gains won through united action, raising current concerns for today’s workers, and reminding governments that injured workers cannot be ignored.

Organized by the Ontario Network of Injured Workers Groups (ONIWG) and the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL), the day is typically marked by a rally held at Queen’s Park in Toronto, where activists call for improvements to workers’ compensation, enhanced health and safety regulations, and better treatment of injured workers. 

However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s event will be held online and will feature stories, speeches, and messages of hope and struggle from injured workers and health and safety advocates.

“Ontario’s health and safety and workers’ compensation systems are broken. The coronavirus has not created these problems, but it has brought them clearly into focus, and we cannot go back to how things were before the pandemic,” says ONIWG. “This June 1, let us stand together and push for a better future by demanding that workers be protected on the job; by ensuring that those who get sick are covered by workers’ compensation without hassle or delay; and by calling on the compensation board to stop cutting workers’ benefits.”

UFCW Canada members, activists, and allies can attend this year’s online Injured Workers Day rally, which will be held on June 1 between 11am and 12:30pm, by RSVPing on Facebook and by watching the live stream of the event on YouTube or Crowdcast. The stream will also be available for replay once the event has finished.

As Canada’s leading union, UFCW Canada believes that every worker deserves to come home safe and healthy at the end of their workday. Accordingly, our union provides members, allies, and health and safety advocates with the tools and resources needed to proactively identify, control, and eliminate hazardous working conditions. To learn more about our work on health and safety issues, including injured workers’ rights, visit UFCW’s Health & Safety webpage.