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e-3338 (Social affairs and equality)
E-petition
Initiated by Zahra Dhanani from Toronto, Ontario
Original language of petition: English
Petition to the Government of Canada
Whereas:
- Throughout 2020-21, nooses, racial slurs and other expressions of hatred against Black people have been reported at various construction sites within Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia;
- Black workers have reported being harassed, assaulted, and have felt unsafe while working on site;
- In response, a number of community forums have occurred involving representatives from all levels of government, as well as representatives from the construction industry, and labour organizations;
- Communities have protested to call for lasting changes and appropriate consequences for perpetrators to deter others from carrying out these hateful acts;
- Representatives from within the industry have acknowledged that anti-Black racism is commonplace; and
- All of these reported incidents are in contravention of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Labour Code, Criminal Code, Human Rights Act, and applicable provincial health and safety legislation.
We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to:
1. Create a National Task Force on Racial Violence in Construction to lead an investigation into the conditions on commercial construction sites, with a report on recommendations; this, in order to create a culture shift towards a safe and healthy environment for all workers, especially Black workers; and
2. Require recipients of any federal construction contract to conduct anti-racism training, with a focus on anti-Black racism, for all workers, supervisors, managers and executives, including any subcontractors, and to provide a project-specific anti-racism strategy and incident response plan, with an emphasis on ensuring contractor evaluation and compliance.
- Open for signature
- April 20, 2021, at 11:59 a.m. (EDT)
- Closed for signature
- July 19, 2021, at 11:59 a.m. (EDT)
