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Nearly nine in 10 Canadians favor bankruptcy law reform
MP's bill would move workers wages
to the head of the cue in corporate bankruptcy proceedings
Ottawa - Canadians overwhelmingly believe bankruptcy laws are unfair
to workers and should be reformed, according to a poll conducted by
Vector
Research of Toronto for the National Union of Public and General
Employees (NUPGE).
Under existing law, the taxes companies owe, plus all
claims by lenders and suppliers, take precedence over obligations to pay workers pensions,
benefits, vacation pay, severance, even the wages already earned. |
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Pat Martin & James Clancy |
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Every year, thousands of workers are left
in the lurch by bankrupt companies that fail to raise enough money through the sale
of assets and equipment to pay off all their creditors when they go
out of business.
Workers, because they are not secured creditors, are stuck at
the back of the line, frequently losing wages and benefits owed to them.
In the Vector Poll:
• 73% of Canadians said that when a company emerges from bankruptcy
proceedings it
should first be obligated to pay the wages, benefits or contributions to the employee pension
plan. Only 7% said the company should first pay taxes it owes.
• 84% said current bankruptcy laws are unfair to
workers. Only 10% felt existing laws treat workers fairly.
• 89% supported changing the bankruptcy laws to improve protection for
unpaid wages and benefits.
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Bill C-281
The federal New Democratic Party has introduced a private members bill
entitled the Worker’s First Bill (C-281), which would reverse
existing priorities and move workers to the front of the cue, making
their wages, pensions and benefits the first priority when a company
goes bankrupt.
Debate on the bill, tabled by Pat Martin (NDP — Winnipeg Centre),
began on Dec. 3 and will resume in February. The full text of the bill
is
available online.
“It’s time for Parliament to bring fairness to our bankruptcy laws,”
says James Clancy, president of the 337,000-member union.
“Canadian workers need and deserve the changes proposed in Bill C-281
and we’re encouraging Members of Parliament to put the interests of
workers first by working together to pass this very important piece of
legislation.”
Nationwide, 1,120 Canadians were interviewed by telephone in August
for the Vector Poll. The results are considered accurate within 2.9
percentage points. NUPGE
Web posted by NUPGE:
8 December 2004
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