Steven Del Duca, Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, issued the following statement on Wednesday:
“This week Doug Ford announced that he would be re-opening Ontario’s economy without paid sick leave for workers. Any re-opening that doesn’t include paid sick leave for all workers risks sending us back into another lockdown.
For months, Ontario Liberals have been calling on Doug Ford to restore and enhance the paid sick leave he cut in 2018. Workers continue going to work sick because he refuses to give them the security to isolate without missing a paycheque.
Doug Ford needs to put forward a plan to deliver 10 days of government funded emergency paid sick leave now, before he sends workers back to their jobs. Lives and livelihoods are on the line.
When he’s sitting on billions of dollars in unspent COVID-19 funding, there is simply no excuse for Doug Ford not to provide paid sick leave. Right now he’s forcing struggling small businesses to foot the bill for their workers to have the security to isolate. They need government support now.
Time and time again, Doug Ford has ignored the advice of Ontario’s top doctors and the concerns of thousands of small business owners struggling to provide their workers with paid sick leave. It’s time for Doug Ford to start listening. Ontario Liberals are.”
