Average hourly wage in Canada now $34.95: StatCan
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
Canadian advocates supporting abortion rights caution against complacency regarding protections in place in this country -- after a landmark ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, effectively ending America’s constitutional protections for abortion for the last nearly 50 years.
While abortion was decriminalized in Canada in 1988, no legislation was ever passed to replace it, and the issue remains an ongoing topic of political conversation in this country.
Experts also say that there are several barriers to access to abortion in the country, including geography, equity and immigration status.
“(This) is a signal for us in Canada and around the world to not be complacent with the rights that we have,” Kelly Bowden, director of policy and advocacy at Action Canada, told CTV News Channel.
“While we have a well-protected right to access abortion here in Canada, we should be vigilant about protecting and defending that right.”
The ruling in the U.S. is likely to hit racialized women the hardest, Pam Hrick, the executive director and general council at Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF), told CTV News Channel.
“I am angry and I am heartbroken for the millions of women and pregnant people in the United States who are going to be impacted by this decision … and will be forced to carry pregnancies to turn that they do not want to put their health and in some cases, their lives at risk,” she said.
“And, we have to be clear this is not going to be an impact that is equitable across women and pregnant people. It will be disproportionately borne by Black, racialized, poor and otherwise marginalized people.”
Speaking at a press briefing in Rwanda, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada will continue to fight to protect the rights of everyone after the "devastating setback" in the United States.
Following the U.S. Supreme Court leak, the Liberal government announced in early May it plans to spend $3.5 million to improve abortion access in Canada. However, advocates have warned that more permanent funding and legislation for sexual and reproductive health care are needed in Canada.
Hrick says that the possibility of improving abortion access in the U.S. now depends on the state level and to what extent they will implement bans on abortions.
“So, there will be I certainly hope, a tremendous fight and focus on state legislatures and people trying to elect pro-choice, progressive people into those positions to make decisions that will actually give and respect the rights of women to be able to access this incredibly important medical procedure,” she said.
Bowden says that abortion rights and access will impact the younger generations of women from racialized and marginalized communities in Canada the most, and these are the faces she’s seeing more of in pro-choice rallies.
“The majority of the people (in pro-choice rallies) were young women, young Trans folks and people of colour who have come out because they know that this is an issue that will impact their lives, their livelihoods, their ability to choose and how and when they want to have families.
“And, I'm proud and pleased to see young people who are standing up and speaking out in defence of these rights. And what we do have them here in Canada,” she said.
Bowden says she advocates a “wait and watch” approach to see if there will be a spillover effect to the overturning of Roe V. Wade in Canada, and that Action Canada will be monitoring the situation closely.
“The actual numerical impact of that is yet to come in the U.S. as well as, enshrined right here in Canada is that Canadians continue to face barriers to access here.
“So, we also need to concentrate on ensuring that our system is strong and that the universal health care of abortion which we are granted as a convenience is actually accessible here as well.”
-------
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, CTVNews.ca wants to hear from Canadians who have had an abortion.
Did you struggle to access abortion services or information in Canada? Was it difficult to secure an appointment?
Tell us your story by emailing dotcom@bellmedia.ca, and include your name and location. Your comments may be used in a CTVNews.ca story.
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
A 4.2-magnitude earthquake was recorded west of Vancouver Island early Friday morning.
Andy Kim's 'Rock Me Gently' is marking a major milestone, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
Oprah Winfrey said on Thursday evening that she has long played a role in promoting unhealthy and unrealistic diets.
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Toronto police say a man who allegedly attempted to access Drake’s Bridle Path property was taken to hospital on Thursday after an altercation with security guards.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
The stakes have been set for a bet between Vancouver and Edmonton's mayors on who will win Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
A grieving mother is hosting a helmet drive in the hopes of protecting children on Manitoba First Nations from a similar tragedy that killed her daughter.
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
A P.E.I. lighthouse and a New Brunswick river are being honoured in a Canada Post series.