The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted everyone, and local governments haven’t been spared. Municipal governments provide vital services that include emergency response, transit, public housing, long-term care, day care, libraries, recreation and many more services that we take for granted on a daily basis.
Lost revenues due to COVID-19 will have devastating impacts on the ability of our local governments to deliver the important services we all rely on at a time when these services are increasingly needed. We have already seen municipalities such as our own who are facing serious financial shortfalls, being forced to defer important projects, reduce services and lay off, furlough or redeploy the workers who provide these services.
Municipal governments are an important economic driver in our communities and in the greater Canadian economy. The emerging municipal crisis could act as a destabilizing force for our national economy. In addition, mass funding shortfalls at the municipal level would result in significant delays in local economic recovery and an increase in the numbers of community members who are experiencing layoffs, reduced wages or job losses.
The Canadian Labour Congress has asked for immediate action from the provincial and federal governments to provide emergency funding for municipalities in order to protect vital local services.
Please join me in amplifying this call to save our cities, towns, and municipalities from financial devastation by providing immediate emergency assistance.
Mike Bellerose
President
Sudbury and District Labour Council