44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 30, 2022 11:00AM
- May/30/22 2:34:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is no secret. The data are available. The experts have been very clear.
Consider this example. During the omicron wave, a total of 163,000 deaths could have been prevented in the United States alone if the U.S. had had a higher vaccination rate like we have in Canada.
That said, Canada still has a lot more work to do. We need to keep increasing our third-dose vaccination rate to protect ourselves against the pandemic.
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- May/30/22 2:36:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, here is a basic number: 690,000. That is the number of hospitalizations that the United States would have avoided, just in the last few months during omicron, had it had a high vaccination rate like the one we have in Canada. As I said earlier, there is more work to do because, unfortunately, however difficult it may be for some to hear and understand, the pandemic is still with us and we need to keep fighting it.
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- May/30/22 2:39:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the last two years have been very difficult on Canadians. The pandemic, a once-in-a-hundred-years event, has caused significant disruptions to our businesses and to our lives. Our government was there helping small businesses and supporting Canadians during a very uncertain period. We will continue to do whatever it takes to protect Canadians. We are glad to see businesses come back to normal. We are glad to see the economy is booming. We are glad to see unemployment at the lowest record in history. We will continue to support Canadians.
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- May/30/22 3:03:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I just answered in response to the previous question, we are making unprecedented investments in Canada's immigration system to ensure that we can smoothly welcome people to Canada who make essential contributions to our economy.
I would like to point out to the hon. member that we are now in an economic context in which we have seen 115% of the jobs lost during the pandemic come back. Our GDP is better than prepandemic levels and our unemployment level is now at the lowest rate since we started recording those statistics more than 50 years ago.
That said, we can do more by continuing to bring in workers to fill the almost 900,000 gaps in the economy and the labour market. We are going to continue to invest in our immigration system to do that. It is the path forward that will help us achieve growth.
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- May/30/22 3:09:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the 75th World Health Assembly convened last week. It was the first to be held in person since the beginning of the pandemic.
This was an excellent opportunity for the delegates, WHO experts, partner agencies and civil society to discuss current priorities and future solutions to issues critical to global public health.
Can the Minister of Health tell the House more about this assembly and how Canada plays a leading role in global public health?
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- May/30/22 3:10:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by thanking our colleague from Pierrefonds—Dollard for his excellent work.
Last week I did indeed have the opportunity to participate in the World Health Organization's 75th World Health Assembly. The theme was was “Health for peace, peace for health”.
At the assembly, I was able to meet, talk and work with many of my counterparts regarding the fight against the pandemic and efforts to prepare for future pandemics. We also talked about antimicrobial resistance and the effects of climate change on health and health care.
I was also able to meet with Ukraine's health minister to offer him the Canadian government's unwavering support for his people's health and health care.
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- May/30/22 7:51:58 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are fortunate in Canada to have a world-class public service. Whether on the front lines of our communities, from a home office, from a laboratory or in many other workplaces, federal public servants across the country continue to provide Canadians with the critical services they rely on and have not wavered since the start of the pandemic. Indeed, the federal public service is an incredibly diverse workplace.
As the employer of the federal public service, the government is responsible for creating safe working conditions for public servants no matter where they work.
An employer has an obligation to protect its employees. That is why, as the country's largest employer, we led by example to better protect the health and safety of public servants during the COVID‑19 pandemic. That included mandatory vaccination.
Last October, we implemented a policy requiring that all public employees of the core public administration, including the RCMP, be vaccinated. This requirement applies to all employees, whether they are working remotely or working on site. It also applies to contractors who require federal access to federal government work sites.
Employees who have to travel to a federal workplace need assurances that every possible measure has been taken to ensure their health and safety. A fully vaccinated workforce not only makes workplaces safer, but also enhances the safety of the communities in which these public servants live and work. Vaccination also builds better protection for Canadians who access government services in person, including the most vulnerable members of our communities.
Vaccines are the best way to bring this pandemic to an end, and public servants have stepped up, with 99% of the federal core public administration attesting to being fully vaccinated. We recognize that some public servants are not able to be vaccinated, whether because of a medical contraindication, on religious grounds or on another prohibited ground of discrimination under the Canadian Human Rights Act. These employees can request accommodation, but this is not new.
Employers are required to ensure that they do not discriminate on a prohibited ground and, at the federal level, the Canadian Human Rights Act has been in effect since 1977.
Since that time, the public service has implemented robust processes to review accommodation requests, as evidenced by the Directive on the Duty to Accommodate and other instruments and guides.
Accommodations related to the vaccination policy continue to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the facts and circumstances that may be unique to a specific individual or workplace.
When it comes to a request for accommodation, managers are not making these decisions on their own. They are supported by experienced human resource professionals who receive policy guidance from the office of the chief human resources officer and are supported by legal and privacy advisers. I can assure the House that there has been no discernible impact on the government's operations or on the services Canadians receive every day.
From the beginning of the pandemic, we made a commitment to Canadians that we will protect their health and safety. We have in place measures to protect workers and our communities. As circumstances change, we will adjust these measures. We have always followed advice from our public health experts. We have committed to reviewing this policy every—
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- May/30/22 7:57:03 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would be very pleased to repeat the point I made during my speech.
The federal government has required vaccination for the entire core public administration of the federal government.
We believe that the most fundamental responsibility of any government is to ensure the health and safety of its citizens. As the largest employer in the country, we have an obligation to ensure that public servants work in a safe and healthy environment, whether that is in an office or service centre, at the border, at home or elsewhere. A fully vaccinated workforce results in safer workplaces and safer communities across the country.
This policy is about public health, and the overwhelming majority of public servants have stepped up and have been vaccinated. Public servants are responding to the need to make sure that Canadians are safe and healthy during the pandemic, and the government will continue to protect its employees.
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- May/30/22 11:35:54 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what I would say is that it is a difficult situation for anyone who loses a job or a business, and I have a great deal of empathy. I would like to point out that there are more jobs than before the COVID pandemic and that our unemployment rate is at a historic low.
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