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David Fairey
David Fairey is a labour economist, a research associate of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives – BC Office, and co-chair of the BC Employment Standards Coalition.
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New labour legislation to continue gig worker precarity
Gig work is widely recognized as having all of the characteristics of precarious employment: typically temporary, part-time or casual, low paid, lacking in predictable work…
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Will 2023 be the year BC farmworkers finally receive basic minimum wage protections?
The majority of BC households are stressed because of debt and inflation. It’s even worse for one group of farmworkers who, legally, may earn less…
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Employment rights justice denied to thousands of BC Workers
For decades, the BC Employment Standards Branch has not effectively enforced the Employment Standards Act, meaning thousands of workers are denied their legal rights, a…
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Legislated Paid Sick Leave – A Historic Moment for Worker Rights
The BC government will implement the right for all employees to have a minimum number of employer-paid sick days on January 1, 2022. BC will…
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New federal sickness benefit falls short
Workers in Canada will have access to a federal paid sick leave benefit, but it doesn’t go far enough. The new Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit…
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Legislated paid sick leave is long overdue
Workers in British Columbia without a union collective agreement have no paid sick leave rights under the Employment Standards Act—the provincial legislation that contains the…
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Open Letter to BC Minister of Labour Harry Bains | Re: COVID-19 Action Plan
Hon. Harry Bains Minister of Labour Government of British Columbia Dear Minister Bains: The COVID-19 pandemic is having the greatest social and economic impact on…
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Inquiry needed into gig work in BC
The BC government recently decided to permit the operation ride-hailing services, which are scheduled to begin before the end of the year. Other services, like…
This Labour Day, fruit pickers in BC may have been denied minimum wage
While many British Columbians and visitors may have enjoyed late summer produce like apples, peaches and plums this Labour Day weekend, the workers who pick…
Government wrong to exclude farm workers from basic minimum wage protection
A crowded van picks up an elderly Punjabi grandmother. After a 45-minute unpaid ride to the farm, she picks blueberries in the hot sun for…
Employment supports and labour market participation: 20th Anniversary retrospective
From 2001 to 2003, BC’s new Liberal government instituted significant policy reforms in the delivery and governance of public services. In 2004, Simon Fraser University…
Historic gains in Ontario workers’ rights: What BC can learn
In light of the growth and prevalence of precarious employment and the lack of decent conditions of employment for vulnerable workers, labour advocates and unions…