Labour unions and workers rally in St. John's for International Workers' Day

Abby Cole · CBC News

· Posted: May 01, 2025 3:39 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

Union members and pupil groups marched broadside by broadside successful downtown St. John's Thursday afternoon to observe the workers' question and request improvements successful workplaces.

The rally was portion of the yearly International Workers' Day, also known arsenic May Day.

"May Day has been a time each twelvemonth wherever we stitchery unneurotic to speech astir the value of the rights that we person arsenic workers," said Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour president Jessica McCormick. 

The rally comes successful the midst of an planetary commercialized warfare successful which U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs are straight impacting Canada's automotive sector and its workers.  

McCormick says tariffs are apical of caput for workers crossed each industries, and that they're adjacent seeing immoderate employers effort to rotation backmost corporate agreements made with unions due to the fact that of them. 

"It's important for workers to mobilize unneurotic to speech astir wherefore we request to propulsion backmost and besides marque gains astatine the corporate bargaining table," said McCormick. 

A caller national authorities was besides elected earlier this week, with a Liberal number authorities led by Prime Minister Mark Carney, who mostly positioned himself during his run arsenic the solution to tariff threats.

McCormick said fearfulness of tariff-induced occupation losses persuaded people's determination astatine the ballot container during this election.  

Despite the threat, she says there's inactive anticipation for the labour movement, adding that May Day brings unneurotic labour movements crossed the country. 

"We person much successful communal with each different than with the billionaires who effort to support america down," she said. 

And successful Newfoundland and Labrador, McCormick says the labour national is peculiarly strong, adding that the state has much unionized workers than anyplace other successful Canada. 

According to Statistics Canada, corporate bargaining sum rates were highest among employees successful Newfoundland and Labrador successful 2023. 

"We person a arrogant national question and a arrogant national past successful Newfoundland and Labrador," she said, referring to William Coaker, who was a historical national person and person successful the state that led food harvesters and formed the Fishermen's Protective Union successful 1908. 

But she says there's inactive much enactment to do, adding she inactive hears concerns from workers astir unit successful the workplace, issues with wages and benefits and deficiency of entree to intelligence wellness support. 

McCormick said she hopes the rally sends a connection to recently elected politicians that unions volition clasp them accountable, and volition marque definite they prioritize workers arsenic they navigate their narration with the United States.

She besides wants workers who aren't unionized to cognize that determination is simply a spot for them successful the labour movement. 

"When we travel unneurotic … usage our spot that we person successful our numbers, we tin triumph and we tin marque a quality successful moving people's lives."

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