ADVISORY: Thunder Bay Town Hall Exposes Local Impact of Government Cuts to Services and Democratic Rights

THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Nov. 20, 2012) - Outraged at the McGuinty governments' deep cuts to social programs and the recent attack on the democratic rights of education workers, community members from across Thunder Bay will be gathering this evening for a public town hall meeting. The forum will provide an opportunity for local residents to discuss the impact of job loss and public service cuts in their communities and develop plans to bring pressure to bear on local members of parliament.

The meeting will address local concern over the 14.1 percent of Thunder Bay residents currently living below the poverty line, which is higher than the provincial average of 13.1 percent. Thunder Bay's excessive poverty levels come at a time that Ontario's rate of poverty is climbing faster than the rest of the country. However, the impact of cuts is being felt across most income levels. A recent report from the Ontario Common Front revealed that fully 40 percent of Ontario families have seen their incomes stagnate or fall over the last decade, as Ontario's social program funding lags behind every other province by nearly every measure.

"In communities across the province, families are falling further behind because of McGuinty's cuts to vital services and social programs, while corporate tax cuts continue to starve Ontario's economy of $15 billion annually," said Irwin Nanda, Executive Vice-President of the Ontario Federation of Labour. "Struggling families here in Thunder Bay are right to demand fairness and equity from the McGuinty government. Investing in jobs, protecting services and safeguarding workers' democratic rights is the only way to prevent a double-dip recession and address rising inequality."

The Thunder Bay town hall is the first of a series of regional meetings taking place across Ontario in the lead-up to the Ontario Liberal Leadership Convention and what many view as an inevitable spring election. Community and labour groups have banded together to call on the government to recall the legislature, reverse Bill 115 and invest in the jobs and services.

For more information, visit: www.ofl.ca/index.php/campaigns/democraticrights.

The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) represents 54 unions and one million workers in Ontario. For information, visit www.OFL.ca and follow the OFL on Facebook and Twitter: @OFLabour.