CORNWALL, Ontario – The Cornwall and District Labour Council (CDLC) held an educational and celebratory breakfast at 8:30 a.m. at the Best Western in honour of International Women’s Day.
“There’s two (aspects) to International Women’s Day,” said Louise Lanctot, President of CDLC. “One is celebrating how far we’ve gone and the other is celebrating how much there is left to do.”
Lanctot was thrilled to welcome guest speaker Marie Clarke Walker, the Secretary Treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress.
“Labour congresses are often traditionally led by men, so for her to be able to get into that position and maintain it…it’s a great tribute to her person and the women who support the fact that they need different leaders,” said Lanctot.
Clarke Walker, who is also responsible for the Women and Human Rights department initiatives of the Congress, was excited to speak to attendees about the Done Waiting campaign which commenced last year.
“The fact is, women have been waiting for economic justice for a long long time,” said Clarke Walker. “So, we started out with three issues (of focus within the campaign): the first is violence and harassment. Women are (also) done waiting to get proper child care and women are done waiting for the government to act on pay discrimination.”
Clarke Walker, who has worked with the Congress for 17 years in a number of roles, has spoke across the country and internationally about various Congress campaigns.
“We have done this in Brussels at the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). Every country that has representation on the ITUC has taken aspects of this campaign and run it in their own countries,” said Clarke Walker.
Clarke Walker feels that all of the work she does is extremely rewarding.
“When you’re trying to ensure there is equity and equality for all, it makes the world of a difference. You shouldn’t have to scrape by to make ends meet. In 2019, you shouldn’t have to worry about the man sitting next to you making more money than us,” said Clarke Walker.
The issue of addressing workplace harassment is a priority of the Congress. Clarke Walker said the International Labour Organization is still pushing to host a new convention on violence and harassment in the world of work.
“We’ve all been following Jody Wilson-Raybould’s testimony and while it’s not outward violence or physical violence, bullying and harassment is a form of violence,” said Clarke Walker.
