Jobs and training opportunities

COVID-19 has highlighted the gaps between the wealthy and the rest of us. Too many in Winnipeg North are working hard to get by but facing economic and racial barriers to their success.

My career has been focused on supporting economic opportunities and training for Indigenous peoples and newcomers to Canada, and building bridges between these communities. 

For our communities to thrive after this pandemic, we need to make sure that government is focused on raising wages and creating opportunities for those who have been left behind for far too long. 

Too many workers face precarious employment, with little in the way of rights and benefits on the job and increased risks to their health and safety. We need to make workplaces safer and strengthen workers’ rights with things like mandatory paid sick leave for all workers. No one should have to choose between their paycheque and staying home when they are sick to protect public health. 

And while so many workers, families and small business owners have suffered through this pandemic, a few at the top have made record profits. Those who have profited off the pandemic should pay their fair share for our economic recovery. 

A just transition to a green economy

We face a public health crisis, but also an ecological crisis. We need a federal government that takes the threat of climate seriously, with bold action towards a systematic shift in Canada’s energy system, its transportation networks, and housing and building stock. 

We need to make sure that Canada respects its commitments to uphold the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 

With vision and courage, we can create good-paying jobs, build climate resilience and dramatically lower our carbon emissions through strategic investments in things like electric public transportation, energy efficient affordable housing, and building retrofits. We must tackle the climate emergency in a spirit of reconciliation and with meaningful consultation with Indigenous communities, and make sure that everyone has access to a safe and healthy environment. 

Services that work for people in Winnipeg North

COVID-19 has an incredibly disproportionate affect on people living on low incomes those working in precarious jobs, the elderly, and women.  

The COVID-19 pandemic has been especially devastating in for-profit long-term care homes. We need to end for-profit long-term care, because what should come first is the care of elderly loved ones, not shareholder profits.  

The Liberal government in Ottawa has backed away from supporting health care funding and continued the cuts that were imposed by Stephen Harper. This means provinces like Manitoba are not receiving the support we need. 

The communities of Winnipeg North have unique needs when it comes to public services like health care, and we need someone to advocate on our behalf in Ottawa. We also need to ensure that mental health supports and services are accessible to the people who need them. 

I am ready to fight for a universal pharmacare program so that everyone can afford the medication they need.

And we need to build a national childcare program that is universally accessible and affordable, and make sure that early childhood educators are paid fair wages for the vital work that they do.