KARIN Kirkpatrick, BC Liberal Critic for Children, Family Development and Childcare, said on Thursday that she is joining Equal Work – Equal Pay B.C. to call on John Horgan and the NDP to deliver pay equity for non-unionized workers in the community service sector.

“It’s unconscionable that in the middle of a pandemic, the very people who put their health at risk to keep the rest of us safe are being discriminated against because the NDP is making policy decisions based on ideology, rather than equity and fairness,” said Kirkpatrick. “If this is not an example of government interference resulting in unfair labour practice, I don’t know what it is.”

Since April 2019, the B.C. Liberals have been asking when John Horgan would end the practice of pay discrimination against the 17,000 non-unionized workers — mostly women — who are offering the same level of essential community services as unionized workers, but for less money.

“As the Legislative Session is set to begin next week, we ask this government to immediately equalize funding and to pay the wage increases to non-union employers, which have been held back since April of 2019,” added Kirkpatrick. “It’s unacceptable for the NDP to disrespect the hard-working workers and punish them, simply for being non-unionized.”