Rights in the Workplace
bread and roses
Topics and Resources
Voting for Rights at Wal-Mart
Summaries
Course materials and information for Alpharoute students
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Evaluation

Week 3 Summary - Facts

1. We need to know about workplace hazards which is a right shared in Canada by most workers. Employers should tell workers about specific workplace hazards and the hazards of shift work and their stress. One new fact about about Health and Safety is that an employer should give regulations.These regulations should contain the mininium protection to workers against danger.

2. The fact about workers' right to workplace health and safety appears as standards in the workplace health and safety laws. These laws are known as regulations. It is illegal for an employer not to follow a regulation. A reguation contains the minimum protection an employer must give a worker against dangers to the worker's good health and safety. The minimum protection is defined as a standard.

3. Your right is always protected. That is one fact.

4. One new fact I learned about health and safety rules is when an employer doesn't set the work place's health and safety standards high enough, the Government could come in and inspect the work place.

5. One fact about health and safety issue is that if someone is a unionized worker he get higher safety standards through the help from his union.

6. One fact is that employees put their money aside for when someone gets hurt so it's their money which will protect them if they become disabled and can't work.

7. WHIMS legislation states that employers should know the hazardous materials across Canada. I got this information from Work place Dangers.

8. I learned that not all workers' who are hurt on the job. Are covered by workers' compensation. The employer must be registered with the workers' compensation board first. Again if someone is hurt on the job and they are not with the board.That person can retrieve lost wages and medical expenses by suing the employer. That comes from the Workers' Compensation article.

9. If you think your employer is paying you below the minimum wage you can file a complaint to the government. This is from the article, Making A Complaint.

10. One new fact about health and safety is that you have a say and a right to participate in decisions affecting health and safety in the work place. This information comes from Work Rights.ca You Have A Say. This article was insightful because the law sates that workers can be elected as paid worker representatives on health and safety committees. Workers participating on the committee work with management to control or eliminate dangers in the work place. The committees are there to give advice to improve workers health and safety. The final decisions rest with the employer.

11. If the work place is unsafe to work the workers have the right to contact the union office or walk off the job. I got information from the article: Unsafe Work The Right to Refuse Unsafe Work.

12. The name of the article is: Safe Work places The Right To A Safe and Healthy Work place. Health and safety regulations vary between the fourteen provincial, territorial and federal work place jurisdictions. This is important information because when you get a job people should know what rules are Important, when a work place's regulation standards fall a workers safety may be in danger. Workers want to be legally protected by all rights.

13. From Occupational Safety Magazine Body Count Editor Michelle Morra explained that employers are not doing a good job in properly training employees on preventing work injury. I found this insightful because now I know what to expect in the work force.

14. I received my Information from WorkRight.ca.ca making a complaint. "In every province and territory, workers who feel their boss has broken the employment standards law can file a complaint. But they should be aware that there are often time limits for filling, and that complaints can take a long time to resolve".

15. While reading the article workers' compensation. I was astonished to find out that not every employee who is injured or sick from work related injuries is eligible to receive workers' compensation, only if their employer is registered with the board of workers compensation.

16. It is important to take time off when you are sick or injured in the work place. First of all to identify the problem and to get the medical help you need also to preventing other workers from been sick pending the symptoms . I don't think people with responsibility wants to take time off just to stay home . the worker always lost money by staying home they could louse there home shay will be behind with there bills . because it could take mounts to get a check from WSIB its never always good to stay home it can stress you out going though pain and suffering . i know this from my own experience .

17. 60% of accidents in the work places result in slipping and tripping, I get this form my work places. Health and safety is very important in the work places. It's everyone's responsibility that we have a safe work environment. If you are working in a company and the supervisors gave you unsafely work you can refusal it and if he are she give you any problem you can take them to the labour board.

18. I made sure there was a fire extinguisher in there also heat in the winter time.

Week 3 Summary - Questions

1. I would like to know where to go to if I am hurt at the workplace.

2. What will happen to an employer if the employees are injured themselves in the workplace? What about their health and safety on the job.?

3. What I need to know is if the work place has hazard prevention for it's employees. My question is who is responsible for injury in the workplace? Is it the company, the union or the government inspectors?

4. How could I know if I am being underpaid?

5. What should you do if there is a fire in the building you are working in? Get out as fast possible.

6. What I need to know is if they (employer)take work hazard prevention serious. One question I have is, is experience part of the health & safety issue? If not, then new employees with no training could hurt them self and then who is responsible for their injuries?

7. Hi my name is Rose, We do need to know about health and safety in the work place where you use gloves and mouth protection for safety and we should know our rights.

8. Can the employer force someone to work, at a lower position with less pay, within the same company they are already working in?

9. Hi it's Funmi, What I think you need to know about health and safety in the work place is you can refuse to do something that you know is unsafe to your health.

10. What do you think workers should know about the minimum wage?

11. What we would need to know is how to examine the safety procedures to be well aware of our right to refuse work in a unsafe environment.

12. The question that formed from the article is: What is the responsibility of the employer to inform or report work related injuries to the health and safety board?

13. If I am off sick will I have compensation coverage or if I got injured on the job?

14. What if my boss sends me to lift a box and I think is not safe to remove by myself?

15. What we need to now about health and safety in a work place is a thing called W H I M I S, we need to know this so we can take proper safety precautions.

16. Ask one new question about health and safety you have based for something. I would like to know why they make safety rules? And why the people who make the rules don't follow them?

17. What do we need to know about health and safety in the work place? Get information from my employer about injuries on the job, illnesses, job hazards, and workers rights.

18. How do inspect the work area for hazards or things that can cause accidents?

19. The things we need to know about health and safety in the work place is to pay attention to detail, ask about certain health and safety working environments. If you get hurt on the job what are your rights and will you be compensated for loss of work?

20. Hi my name is Kathy The question that was from the article Worker's Right.ca. The article told me that there is a limited amount of time to file a complaint. I would like to know what's the time limit I have to file a complaint? What is the process?

21. Hi, it's Brandy, The question that I have was formed from the article Filing A Complaint. What is the amount of time that an employee has to file a complaint? How long is the process?

22. Do you think people that are genuinely hurt the work place should be compensated ?

23. Do you think people who have reading problem in the work places could get extra help?

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Week 2 Summary - Fair pay

I don't think the middle class people are making enough money to live on - every thing is gone up from gasoline to food to utility bills the bus fare.

I think minimum wage is ok but the ODSP takes some money away from me so I can not make over the minimum wage.

When I worked I was not covered with work benefits and I think it sucks.

I do not think it is right that minimum wage is so low that a person who gets minimum wage would not be able to afford to live by themselves.

When a person works forty or more hours a week and still can't feed their kids, then they start to feel useless and their self esteem lowers and it puts them in a desperate situation where they may start doing crimes that ordinarily they wouldn't do. Everyone deserves a to earn a decent wage that they can live on and support their families.

I feel that minimum wage is unfair as many jobs require a lot of physical work and the wages these people get are not enough to support themselves let alone a family. Most of these jobs there are no benefits for the workers either.

I feel that a minimum rate for jobs should at least be $10.00 an hour and it should include some benefits. If benefits were not included then there should be some kind of government assistance for these people and their families.

Week 2 Summary - Hours of Work

Workload becomes an issue when you do somebody work more than he/she can. It is also a safety issue because it may affect the health of the workers in many ways. Actually unionized workers have protection over the number of hours they have to work, but non-unionized workers do not.

Employers are increasing the workloads and ares expecting more results in less time.

I work part-time, about 10-15 hours a week. Sometimes I work some ones elses shift if they need the shift off. I think that a worker should work as much hours he or she can work.

I think that worker should have more hours if they would like them. But they should not be forced to work more then 40 a week. For some workers it is not safe to work more then 40 hours a week. Doctors Nurses Factory workers Transport truck drivers. Because of stress exhaustion and some workers have to be a alert workers.

I think it's very unfair that workers have to work so many long hours, some of them don't make enough money,also they have a family life to be with.

People deserve not to be overworked and underpaid, being overwhelmed could lead to health problems. Workload safety is an issue because demanding, excessive, workloads, and so many hours can cause them to have stress in the work place where they do not work as good.

Week 2 Summary - Pay Equity

What men can do, women can do it better, so let it be equal pay for men and women. People think men can work harder than women. That is not fair because they do the same. Workers should stand up for their rights to get equal pay for equal work. Governments should see to it women get equal pay. Employers should think about their workers but not only about their profit. The unions should fight for the women's rights to get equal pay.

Men believed they are stronger than women. That is not fair because women do same jobs as men do. So they should get paid equally. Women of color and immigrants also get less pay because of discrimination although sometimes they may get equal pay. Governments can impose heavy fines to companies do not comply with pay equity. Workers can speak out if they over work or are put at risk. The unions can organize strikes if workers needs are not met.

I worked in Alberta planting trees. I planted even more trees per day than the men. But I was paid 4.00 per hour less than the men for doing the same work. I also worked in Saskatchewan laying pipes with men and I was paid 4.00 per hour less than the men for doing the same work.

I think the work places is getting better for women because women are taking charge of their own lives. There are more women in university day more then men.

I think selfishness - to women in general, and it’it is unfair especially women of color. Women who have the education andskills shouldn't’t get paid less than men.

I think women get paid less than because the government is sexist and males own more.

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Week 1 Summary - Rights

In week 1, people talked about what rights are important.

  • They said that to be paid fairly and treated humanely, with respect and equality, is important.
  • Workers should have benefits.
  • Employers should think about the needs of workers and should work to bring out the best in workers.
  • It is important that workers can speak out and share their opinions and ideas without being punished or intimidated.
  • It is important that workers can refuse work that is unsafe or if they have already worked too many hours.
  • It is important that workplaces be free from discrimination and harassment.
  • It is important that workplaces are safe and that employers offer proper training: workers need to feel like they're part of the team and its a safe place to work of them.

Scroll down to see what people said about
what they like about their jobs,
what they do not like about their jobs
and what their ideal job would be.

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Student lists of Rights

These are the most important rights for workers in the workplace:

  1. proper pay for proper work
  2. right not to be harassed
  3. safety
  4. washroom breaks
  5. freedom from racial discrimination
  6. equal opportunity
  7. union rights
  8. right to speak out
  9. right to be informed
  10. time off from work

I think important rights for workers are

  • to be free from sexual harassment,
  • free from intimidation,
  • free from racial harassment,
  • fair wages,
  • your right to a job evaluation,
  • your right to speak freely and
  • your right be treated fairly.

Week 1 Summary - Our Jobs - What we like:

  • I feel content when I am creating, and quilting is my passion. If you have to work, why not enjoy it!
  • The best part about the job was the interacting with different people all the time.
  • I really like my job because I get a lot of enjoyment working with the kids.
  • I liked working with people with disabilities in one of my jobs. I learned a lot when I worked there.
  • My favorite job is irrigation. It is always nice to be able to get a tan while you work, and stay physically fit.
  • It was a good job because it was straight day shift 7-4 and on Friday's it was 7-1.
  • I liked that job because I got to meet a lot of new people and made tons of money.
  • I like the cooking hamburgers.
  • I loved baking.
  • Worked in a cafe, I liked working with people.
  • I work as a printer. I like my job very much. I work 3 shifts.
  • I liked working with the people. They worked as a team.
  • The things that I liked best about working there, was I like showing people around the Gym. I liked it there because the people were friendly.
  • I enjoy working because I love meeting, working with people, and I love working for my money.
  • I liked packaging the boxes,
  • I liked the work because I like meeting with new people. I have the gift of working with my hands. I like making people beautiful and good looking.
  • What I like about the job is that it is not to stressful.
  • My previous job was working as a machine operator. It had its advantages. For example; the fast pace job and of coarse the money.
  • I like this job very much because I had an opportunity to talk and work with many people from different countries and customs.
  • My favorite part of this job is the fact that I was helping people and that I got to ski the hill before anybody else. I also like the fact that I got paid $80.00 a day for skiing down a hill.

Scroll down to see what people said about
what they do not like about their jobs
and what their ideal job would be.

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Week 1 Summary - Our Jobs - What we do not like:

  • I didn't like it being watched over in the job I was doing.
  • What I didn't like was that they didn't provide a prayer place to Muslims. I have seen some places that provide prayer rooms to its employees.
  • The thing that I don't like about the job is when it is very cold outside. We still have to go out with kids.
  • The part I dislike in this job was the long hours and working weekends.
  • I didn't like the work because there is so much stress and quarrelling all the time.
  • The one thing I did not like about the job was the closing of the kiosk, which involved climbing a ladder to put up a tarp.
  • It was an awesome job until they hired a new plant manager, and a human resource person.
  • It was a well paying job but it also had its disadvantages, such as, working in the bad weather no breaks and the fact that most people do not like door-to-door salespeople, so I had many people slamming doors in my face.
  • I absolutely loathed that job! It involved selling magazine packages to residents in Ontario. It was a telemarketing job, something that I will never put myself through again (if I can help it).
  • My last job had a lot of heavy lifting.
  • I did not like the hours and most of all I didn't like my BOSS.
  • I worked for 13 years doing daycare at my house. I liked working for myself. I did not like that some parents and other people asked me when I was going back to work or going to get a real job. People do not respect daycare workers. They call us babysitters.
  • I did not like I did not get paid.
  • I didn’t like doing the dishes.
  • My dislikes being a cashier is the hours were not the best, the pay was very low and there was a lot of stealing. The manager was not pleasant.
  • I got fired for something not my fault. Now they are going to have to take the time to train someone else.
  • And that was a very stressful job because sometimes it would get busy and sometimes people were rude to me on the phone.
  • What I did not like about my job was too many chiefs.
  • I found the work to be easy, however my disappointment was with the other workers whom constantly complained about everything and anything.
  • The thing that I didn’t like about the gym was cleaning the machines. I didn't like cleaning the customers’ nasty sweats from the machine.
  • At first I used to love the job. The hours, breaks and the coworkers. Workers used to get their time schedule and knew what to do. But after working there for a while, I noticed that things were changing in a bad way. There was no organization and I started to get too much work on my hands and I wasn't getting the right pay for the job. Then I ended up quitting.

Scroll down to see what people said about
what their ideal job would be.

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Week 1 Summary - Our Ideal Jobs

  • My ideal job is working with animals. I would like to have a big farm in the country to keep all the animals from being put to sleep.
  • My ideal kind of job is the one that has proper organization and has a union,so that you have the rights to speak out and don't end up losing your job.
  • My ideal job would have to do with working with special needs children.
  • Right now I don’t have an ideal job, what I want to do is get my GED and then see what choices I have.
  • My ideal job would be sitting at a desk on the computer working with numbers like a accountant or someone doing payroll.
  • My ideal job would be not to hear any complaints from anyone so I guess I look forward to being my own boss.
  • My ideal job would be either a registered psychologist or a legal administrative assistant. I enjoy learning about everything I possibly can in both of those fields.
  • I would like to make more than twenty dollars an hour.
  • The most ideal job I would like to have is to be an office assistant. I love using computers.
  • My ideal job is working with jewelry or things you can create yourself.
  • An ideal job for me will be working 8 hours a day where I can have my weekends free to do all others things I enjoy to do, like visiting a family member.
  • My ideal job would be either working with children or designing clothes.
  • My ideal job is a lawyer; being a lawyer, I got the chance to communicate with all kinds of people.

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