International Women’s Day Greetings from the YCL-LJC 

On the occasion of March 8, International Women’s Day, the Central Executive Committee of the Young Communist League of Canada – Ligue de la jeunesse communiste du canada extends revolutionary greetings to all those struggling for women’s rights. 

This International Women’s Day, the YCL-LJC espouses the interrelating pillars of the Women’s International Democratic Federation: anti-fascism, lasting peace, women’s rights, and better conditions for children.

Working conditions remain at the forefront of the struggle for equality and women’s rights. On average in Canada, women working full time earn 75 cents for every dollar earned by men. The gender pay gap in Canada is one of the worst in the world at nearly double the global average. Despite legislation since the 1970s outlawing pay inequity among genders, the gender pay gap exists across all industries in Canada. 

The gender pay gap is more than double in the private sector than it is in the public sector. The significantly higher union density in the public sector contributes to this. Organized labour has played the decisive role in the push for women’s rights in Canada. Notably, the 1979 Common Front in Quebec and the 1981 Canadian Union of Postal Workers 42-day strike paved the way for paid maternity leave for all working moms in the country. 

Banking and financial services have the highest percentage of women workers and the largest pay gap of all the federally regulated private sector industries, with 54.7 percent of women employees in that sector and a wage gap of 82 cents for every dollar earned by men in the sector.

As young communists, we need to agitate for a public monopoly on social services, with universal, not tiered or qualified access. Increasing the social wage with childcare, education, healthcare, transportation, social housing will disproportionately benefit women facing oppression and lower compensation. Increasing social services also means more quality unionized jobs in sectors with a higher portion of women workers such as healthcare, education, and civil service administration. 

There is no equality possible in the face of war and genocide. “Fighting to defend the rights of women” is frequently used in propaganda calling for military intervention. Peace is a requirement for equality. Women are always the first victims of war, their rights are ignored and delayed as their homes, their families and their communities are destroyed. Peace is a women’s rights issue. 

We express full solidarity with the women of Palestine, and our support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign against Israel, which is attempting a genocide of the Palestinian people with the backing of the imperialist powers.

Cuban women have suffered over 60 years of an illegal blockade. This is an extra-territorial imposition on the nations of the world to force them to abide by a policy decision of the United States. We call on the United States to abide by the will of the world and stop the criminal blockade of Cuba.

Communists have always taken up the call for increased gender equality, and have continuously fought for accessible childcare, reproductive healthcare, truly equal pay rates, and higher rates of education for women and gender-oppressed people.

Oppression strengthens and reinforces the exploitation of one class over another. Today and tomorrow, the YCL-LJC remains committed to the fight against all forms of oppression.

Solidarité avec le Front commun / Solidarity with the Common Front

English text follows. 

La Ligue de la jeunesse communiste du Canada témoigne de sa pleine solidarité envers la lutte des 420 000 salarié-es des services publics au Québec qui, réunis en Front commun, s’attaquent aux politiques hostiles et anti-populaires du gouvernement de François Legault. Nous étendons notre solidarité aux autres travailleur-euses du secteur public dont la convention collective est échue depuis le 31 mars dernier et les encourageons à emboiter le pas et à joindre la lutte de leurs collègues du Front commun qui adoptent à très forte majorité des mandats de grève allant jusqu’à la grève générale illimitée. 

Nous dénonçons les offres du gouvernement qui, avec une augmentation salariale d’à peine 9% sur cinq ans, sont bien en-deçà du taux d’inflation. Les données de ce même gouvernement planchent en effet sur une inflation qui devrait atteindre plus de 16%, ce qui prouve que son but avoué est d’appauvrir les employé-es du secteur public. Nous dénonçons également les méthodes vicieuses employées par la partie patronale qui, au lieu de négocier de bonne foi, cherche à prendre la population à parti dans l’objectif d’isoler le Front commun et sans doute imposer un retour au travail par loi spéciale. 

Considérant que la lutte dans laquelle s’embarque le Front commun a pour objectif l’expansion et l’amélioration de nos services publics (donc de notre salaire socialisé), la jeunesse tant ouvrière qu’étudiante a tout à gagner en se rangeant derrière cette lutte. En effet, après des décennies de néolibéralisme exacerbé, nos écoles, nos universités et par conséquent, nos conditions d’études se sont dégradées, sans compter le caractère de plus en plus prohibitif des frais de scolarité. Il en est de même de la condition de nos hôpitaux et de notre système de santé lui aussi en proie à la privatisation à toute vapeur. Enfin, rappelons que de meilleures conditions salariales et l’expansion de nos services publics sont un gage de création d’emplois stables, bien rémunérés et syndiqués. 

Nous savons également que cette bataille sera décisive non seulement pour la classe ouvrière de l’ensemble du Québec, mais aussi pour l’ensemble du Canada. En effet, une victoire du gouvernement CAQ galvaniserait les différents dirigeants provinciaux et les encouragerait à imposer plus violemment la feuille de route des monopoles. Car si 420 000 salarié-es en grève contre un seul patron n’arrivent pas, qui y parviendra? Inversement, une victoire du Front commun porterait un coup dur à la CAQ, mais aussi à l’ensemble des gouvernements provinciaux réactionnaires qui cherchent à déposséder la classe ouvrière des quelques conquêtes sociales dont elle bénéficie, mais aussi de ses droits. 

Jeunes communistes, nous reconnaissons le caractère historique de cette mobilisation qui a lieu dans un contexte d’inflation, de hausse des taux d’intérêts et d’un transfert d’argent inégalé du travail vers le capital. C’est pourquoi nous nous engageons à appuyer activement le Front commun et à en promouvoir les demandes au Québec comme ailleurs au Canada où nous mettrons tout en branle pour multiplier les actions de solidarité à travers notre presse, dans nos syndicats et associations étudiantes. 


The Young Communist League of Canada expresses its full solidarity with the struggle of the 420,000 public sector workers in Quebec who, united as a Common Front, are taking on the hostile, anti-people policies of François Legault’s government. We extend our solidarity to other public sector workers whose collective agreements expired on March 31, and encourage them to follow in the footsteps of their Common Front colleagues, who are overwhelmingly adopting strike mandates up to and including an unlimited general strike.

We denounce the government’s offers, which, with a wage increase of barely 9% over five years, are well below the rate of inflation. In fact, the government’s own figures project inflation at over 16%, proving that its avowed aim is to impoverish public sector employees. We also denounce the vicious methods employed by the employer party, which, instead of negotiating in good faith, seeks to appeal to the population with the aim of isolating the Common Front and undoubtedly imposing a return to work by special legislation.

Considering that the struggle in which the Common Front is embarking is aimed at expanding and improving our public services (and therefore our socialized wage), both young workers and students have everything to gain by rallying behind this struggle. Indeed, after decades of exacerbated neoliberalism, our schools and universities, and consequently our conditions of study, have deteriorated, not to mention the increasingly prohibitive nature of tuition fees. The same applies to the condition of our hospitals and healthcare system, which are also falling prey to privatization at full steam. Finally, let us not forget that better wage conditions and the expansion of our public services are a guarantee of stable, well-paid, unionized jobs.

We also know that this battle will be decisive not only for the working class throughout Quebec, but for Canada as a whole. Indeed, a CAQ government victory would galvanize the various provincial leaders and encourage them to impose the monopolies’ roadmap more violently. For if 420,000 workers on strike against a single boss can’t do it, who can? Conversely, a Common Front victory would deal a heavy blow not only to the CAQ, but also to all reactionary provincial governments seeking to deprive the working class of the few social conquests it enjoys, but also of its rights.

As young communists, we recognize the historic nature of this mobilization, which is taking place in a context of inflation, rising interest rates, and an unprecedented transfer of money from labour to capital. That is why we are committed to actively supporting the Common Front and promoting its demands in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada, where we will be pulling out all the stops to multiply solidarity actions through our press, unions, and student associations.

World Day for Safety and Health at Work

An Injury to One is An Injury to All! 

April 28th marks the Workers’ Day of Mourning in Canada and the World Day for Safety and Health at Work. To mourn for the fallen is to fight for the living. The YCL-LJC expresses solidarity with all workers of the world, who directly or indirectly have paid for employer negligence of health and safety measures at the workplace. 

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MayDay 2020: The Youth will not pay for Capitalism’s Crisis

May 1st, 2020, Central Executive Committee

On the occasion of May 1st 2020, International Workers Day, the Young Communist League of Canada salutes healthcare workers who are on the frontline in the struggle against the COVID-19 Pandemic. We also wish to express our solidarity with those who must continue to work despite the risks of the Pandemic. To all these workers, we reiterate our demand that they be provided at no cost all personal protective equipment and that their health is guaranteed on their workplace. Would that not be the case, their right to refuse to work has to be enforced. We also the more than 10 million people who have lost their job or seen their work hours slashed. 

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Comité exécutif central, 1er mai 2020

À l’occasion du 1er mai 2020, journée des travailleur-euses, la Ligue de la jeunesse communiste du Canada salue les travailleur-euses de la santé qui sont aux premières lignes dans la lutte contre la pandémie de COVID-19. À tous les travailleur-euses, nous réitérons notre demande que leur soient procurés gratuitement des équipements de protection personnels et que leur santé soit également assurée sur leurs lieux de travail. Si tel n’est pas le cas, leur droit de refuser un travail considéré comme dangereux doit être respecté. Nous témoignons également de notre solidarité envers tous ceux et celles qui continuent de travailler malgré les risques encourus par cette pandémie, mais aussi envers les 10 millions de personnes qui ont perdu leur emploi ou qui sont forcés de travailler moins longtemps. 

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Comité exécutif central, mars 2020

Nous saluons les efforts des travailleur-euses de la santé qui, dans la lutte contre la pandémie de COVID-19, continuent d’assurer les services essentiels pour répondre à cet état d’urgence. Depuis plus de 30 ans, les syndicats du service public et les organisations populaires et démocratiques n’ont cessé de lutter contre la privatisation, la perte d’emplois et les fermetures dans le domaine de la santé. Notre système de santé public arrivait à saturation avant même l’éclosion de la pandémie. Des décennies de coupes et d’austérité exposent à la maladie en particulier les travailleur-euses, les Autochtones, les personnes privées d’emploi, les personnes âgées et les moins nantis si aucune action d’urgence n’est prise. 

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Central Executive Committee, March 2020

We salute the immense efforts of healthcare workers to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and provide their essential services in a state of emergency. For over 30 years public sector unions and community organisations have struggled against privatisation, job loss, and closures in the healthcare sector. Our public healthcare system was overwhelmed before the outbreak of the global pandemic. Decades of cuts and austerity will leave working people, Indigenous peoples, the unemployed, the elderly, and the poor severely exposed unless emergency action is taken. 

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