Job Cuts Hurt Women - And we're fighting back!

International Women's Day is coming up soon and we thought we would highlight a booklet produced by the PSAC Programs Section which outlines some of the negative effects the Conservative government's policies have on women in Canada.

The Conservative government’s policies are threatening our human rights, our jobs and our security. Women are hit particularly hard by this slash-and-burn mentality and it will get worse in the years to come. But PSAC women are fighting back!

When the government slashes public services, women suffer:

• They lose good paying jobs. Federal public sector jobs pay an average of 10 per cent more than private sector jobs, thanks PSAC's persistence in fighting for pay equity.

• They lose decent pensions and benefits. In the public sector, two thirds of women have pensions, as opposed to only one third in the private sector. Extended health and maternity benefits are also more prevalent in the public sector.

• They are left vulnerable to harassment. Job insecurity makes women more vulnerable to discrimination and mistreatment.

• They lose the union advantage. There are much lower rates of unionization in the private sector. When women lose public sector jobs, they often lose union protection.

• Job cuts hurt equity. Job cuts and privatization hit women of colour, those with disabilities as well as women from immigrant and Aboriginal communities the hardest. These women are often the last hired and the first to be let go. They are also more likely to be term workers, with no job security.

Read more in the .pdf version of the booklet below - if you would like one or more copies for your Local - contact your Regional Office.