Ontario labour minister denies Skills Development Fund used to reward friends, political allies with millions in grants

Jon Woodward speaks with Ontario Labour Minister David Piccini about his close ties to those who received millions in grants from the Skills Development Fund.

Ontario’s labour minister is defending upwards of $100 million in grants from a controversial government fund to unions or industry organizations that supported the governing Progressive Conservative Party in the last election—and denying that the money’s effect is to reward those organizations for their political support.

David Piccini made those comments when CTV News caught up with him at a Brampton golf course where he was to speak to an industry safety group, in a seven-minute exchange where the minister also denied any impropriety around how millions of the $2.5 billion Skills Development Fund went to people he socializes with.

“It’s a bit ironic that in the past people criticized the PCs about not having the support of labour. And now that we do, (they’re) trying to find any reason,” he said when asked if the fund had a political purpose beyond training workers.

“But the bottom line is, and the truth is, that when we’re supporting unions on the job site, we’re supporting programs all over Ontario that are giving people real skills,” he said.

WATCH THE FULL CTV NEWS INTERVIEW WITH ONTARIO’S LABOUR MINISTER BELOW:

Piccini and his ministry have been answering questions about the process to award grants from the Skills Development Fund since CTV News first reported in September that upwards of $11 million went to a Toronto restaurant chain despite bureaucrats saying the application was rated low and submitted late.

Ontario’s auditor general found those exceptions were made more than half the time by political staff who overrode non-partisan staff to award almost $750 million in grants in a way that was “not fair, transparent or accountable.”

Ontario’s NDP have complained to the province’s integrity commissioner about Piccini’s attendance at a wedding in Paris of a lobbyist working for one company that got some $7.5 million in grants; Piccini was also photographed in rinkside seats with one of that company’s directors while he was environment minister.

• Ontario NDP calls for probe into lobbyist for Skills Development Fund after inviting labour minister to wedding

On Thursday, CTV News found more than $100 million in payouts from the Ministry of Labour to unions and industry organizations that endorsed the Ford government in this year’s election.

That list included construction union LiUNA, Merit OpenShop, and the Pipe Trades Council.

In September, LiUNA withdrew from the Ontario Federation of Labour—a major rift in the province’s labour movement—in response to criticism about the Skills Development Fund coming from public sector unions pointing out the money could be better spent in colleges in crisis.

At the time, international vice-president Joseph Mancinelli described the criticism as “nothing but bad politics attacking the Ford government.”

On Thursday, LiUNA spokesperson Victoria Mancinelli, his daughter, told CTV News in a statement that the union’s endorsement “was not transactional.”

“To suggest otherwise is nothing more than a smear campaign from the sidelines by those who claim to stand with workers but, in reality, abandoned them long ago. It was rank-and-file union members that helped lead the Progressive Conservatives to three consecutive majorities… Today, skilled workers are reflected directly in policy that invests in potential prosperity, giving them the respect and dignity they deserve,” she said.

Public account records show LiUNA or its locals receiving at least $27 million from Ontario’s labour ministry.

When asked about the Paris wedding and the hockey game, Piccini said, “I have a personal life. We all have personal lives, make friends through our profession, through work.”

While a list of recipients has been posted publicly by the ministry, the list does not have attached to it the full grant amounts, nor does it show how each potential project was ranked by bureaucrats.

When asked, “Why the secrecy? Why not be public about where the money went?” Piccini responded, “The Skills Development Fund is changing lives… and I’m proud to invest in life-changing training and support for the next generation.”