There was a time when socialist and social democratic parties and governments were strong advocates for the rights and interests of workers and those forced to live on low incomes. But that is no longer the case. Following the collapse of the Soviet system in 1989, the reformist parties of the left all moved strongly to the right. The result has been a dramatic rise in the inequality between rich and poor, all across the world.
Here in Saskatchewan we know that today’s New Democratic Party government is far different from the governments of Tommy Douglas, Woodrow Lloyd and Allan Blakeney. On key issues like taxation, management of our resource industries, support for corporate agriculture, support for rural and remote communities, and programs which affect the poor including minimum wage, social assistance, and social housing, the current NDP government is more right wing than the Tory government of Grant Devine.
Manitoba NDP mirrors Saskatchewan NDP
But we are not alone. As Cy Gonick documents in his article in the July/August issue of Canadian Dimension Magazine, the NDP government of Manitoba also embraces the new right wing ideology of social democratic governments. One example will illustrate the point. Pimicikamak Cree Nation went to the Minnesota legislature and convinced them to require Manitoba Hydro to report each year on the impact of their dams and reservoirs on the environment and First Nations people. They import $800 million of power from Manitoba each year. Gary Doer’s NDP government formally protested that the new Minnesota law violated the provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
As the minimum wage fell in real terms, and the poverty rate in Manitoba rose to challenge that of Saskatchewan as the highest in Canada, activists in Winnipeg met to consider how to confront the NDP government. The result was the formation of the Just Income Coalition, an alliance of 27 labour, faith and community organizations and 70 individual activists. They chose to first take on the issue of the low minimum wage.
Mobilizing outside electoral politics
Many strategies were adopted. They did the research, issued media releases, held press conferences, met with the Minister of Labour, and petitioned the other MLAs. They established a “minimum wage week” with pastoral events and petitions, street theatre, a concert, public forums and anti-poverty workshops. With little response from the NDP government, they moved on to establish a Low Wage Community Inquiry in Manitoba, which held hearings and produced a report.
The NDP government agreed to raise the minimum wages “two bits a year” for the next few years. Not a great breakthrough. As Cy Gonick points out, for the Manitoba NDP “business comes first,” as in Saskatchewan.
Entering municipal politics
Not willing to give up easily, the Just Income Coalition took a major activist role in the 2006 Winnipeg municipal election. They drafted a Just Income Charter and confronted all candidates. Those who agreed with the Charter pledged to work to achieve a set of goals:
* A living wage for all city workers, including those who contract with the city;
* An efficient and affordable public transportation system;
* Adequate and affordable housing for the poor;
* Regulated and affordable child care for all citizens;
* Improved social assistance benefits; and
* Public recognition of exemplary employers and landlords.
Saskatchewan Coalition for Social Justice
In Saskatchewan we have had the Coalition for Social Justice, created to mobilize people against the policies of Grant Devine’s Tory government. But it was unable to function after the NDP government was formed. An attempt to revive the Coalition a couple of years ago did not work. In Manitoba community organizations and trade unions have put their commitment to social justice above their loyalty to the NDP. When will that happen in Saskatchewan?
John W. Warnock was co-author with Della MacNeil of The Decline of Affordable Housing in Regina (2000), published by the Council on Social Development Regina. The report is even more relevant today.
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