NDP, CPC court workers in new ads

(Ottawa) The New Democratic Party (NDP) and the Conservative Party have both launched television ads that attempt to present Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre in different ways to union voters, a segment of the electorate seen by politicians as having growing influence ahead of the upcoming federal election.

The ad the New Democrats launched across the country last week featured union leaders describing Poilievre as a career politician who “has never been a worker and has never supported workers.” The images include shots of party leader Jagmeet Singh on picket lines at locations across the country.

The Conservatives responded to the attack Monday with their own ad, which claims Poilievre will bring a fresh start, “in a country where hard work means bigger paycheques that buy food and an affordable home.”

After showing images of night workers such as nurses, waitresses and truck drivers, the Conservative Party ad ends with a slogan. “Because after the night, the day rises. Let’s bring common sense home,” Poilievre says before appearing on screen, smiling in a field at dawn.

The Conservatives also launched a radio ad attacking Jagmeet Singh for maintaining his support and confidence agreement with the Liberal minority government, while they continue to blame Liberal policies for rising national crime, housing shortages and long food bank lineups.

Both messages seemed to echo the expectations of people at Toronto’s Labour Day parade, who said they would be watching to see if both parties follow through on their promises.

Workers have heard a lot from politicians lately, said Lily Chang, secretary-treasurer of the Canadian Labour Congress, but what they really want is to see them walk the talk.

“People need politicians to make policy decisions and make sure working people have a chance to thrive,” she said at Monday’s march.

The New Democrats used the support and confidence agreement to advance initiatives such as dental care and pharmacare and a federal ban on replacing workers during a strike with scabs, the latter of which passed with all-party support. When it comes to the cost of living, the NDP blames corporate greed and falling wages, which it says have flourished under Liberal and Conservative governments.

Attracting unionized workers

Federal parties have stepped up their efforts to court union votes as the labour movement experiences a renaissance, said George Soule, a former NDP communications director who is now a principal at strategic communications firm Syntax.

“You see it in the United States where the sitting president went to a picket line, which, by the way, is a place where you will never see Pierre Poilievre,” he said in a telephone interview.

Since Poilievre became Conservative leader two years ago, he has met with more than 60 unions and visited more than 200 traditionally blue-collar workplaces, such as factories, plants and mills, in eight provinces, while saying other federal parties have abandoned them.

But New Democrats point to his absence from the picket lines and his silence after Canada’s two major railways locked out their unionized workers, citing those examples as proof that Poilievre is a “hypocrite.”

“You never hear him talk about corporate greed, you never hear him attack big business,” said NDP labour critic Matthew Green.

“Instead, he’s holding these massive fundraisers in these multi-million dollar mansions while going out and putting on a work vest and fake scuffed shoes, pretending he’s been on the front lines the whole time.”

Michelle Johnston, a union activist at the Toronto march, described herself as an undecided voter. But when she does choose a side, she said it ultimately depends on the policies that impact her, such as women’s health care.

“I’m not sure where the candidates who are running stand,” she said of the parties’ platforms.

Since Poilievre took over the party, the Conservatives have introduced several policies affecting workers, including opposing the use of foreign replacement workers in electric vehicle battery plants and imposing tariffs on electric vehicles, steel, critical minerals and other products made in China.

His party supported legislation banning replacement workers during strikes in federally regulated workplaces, pledging to keep the law in place if the Conservatives form government.

It’s a change of tone from his early days in Parliament, when he voted for a private member’s bill that sought to force unions to publicly disclose how they spend their money. Another bill he supported opened the door for workers in unionized environments to opt out of paying dues.

National opinion polls suggest the change in tone is resonating with Canadians, as the Conservatives have a substantial lead over other parties.

That includes Toronto’s George Smith, who said he plans to vote Conservative for the first time in the next federal election.

“Their goal is to serve the people, not themselves,” said Smith, who believes that vision will be reflected in their candidates and their official election platform.

The Conservatives and the NDP will soon face off in another way — at the ballot box in an upcoming byelection in a Winnipeg riding where unions and the NDP have a history of close ties.

” [M. Poilievre] “He’s trying to make the case that he can take these working-class seats. He’s talking a lot, and this is his chance to show if he can actually do it,” Soule said.

The Conservatives have stepped up their attacks on the New Democrats and their leader in recent weeks, and the NDP has responded in kind.

“If you want a list of things that Canadians want in the next election, one of them is to replace Justin Trudeau, period, no matter what he does,” Soule said.