Tories back Orange Shirt stat holiday

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This article was published 17/03/2023 (904 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A private member’s bill to make Orange Shirt Day a statutory holiday in Manitoba has received support in “principle” from the Progressive Conservatives, but government refused to say if it will support its passage into law.

NDP MLA Ian Bushie’s Bill 203 (Orange Shirt Day Statutory Holiday Act) passed second reading Thursday. It proposes Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, be listed as a general holiday in Manitoba’s Employment Standards Code, alongside New Year’s Day, Louis Riel Day, Canada Day and others.

“A lot of folks out in Manitoba were participating in Orange Shirt Day events all over Manitoba, so the need and the call for this to become a statutory holiday was great and it was heard loud and clear,” said Bushie (Keewatinook). “It’s a day of reflection and a day of being able to actually have those discussions.”

In 2021, the federal government proclaimed Sept. 30 the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour residential school survivors and ensure public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential school systems, in keeping with call to action No. 80 from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Bushie also introduced the bill during the last sitting of the Manitoba Legislative Assembly but it did not pass second reading, as it was voted down by the Tory government Sept. 29, 2022.

Before the bill can become law, the Tories must call it to committee, where members of the public can offer input on the legislation, and call it for concurrence and third reading.

During question period, Bushie called on the government to commit to passing the bill by June 1, when the house rises for the summer. A general election is scheduled for Oct. 3.

Government house leader Kelvin Goertzen said a second reading vote is about accepting the principle of the bill.

On Thursday, the Tories also highlighted other ways Manitoba recognizes Sept. 30, including the closure of non-essential government services and offices and the closure of K-12 schools.

To date, the government has not introduced legislation to make Sept. 30 a statutory day off.

“This government has demonstrated it significantly supports the principle of recognition when it comes to Orange Shirt Day,” Goertzen said.

After question period, Goertzen told reporters the “method and the mode of that recognition” is still being discussed. He would not say whether Bill 203 would be called to committee, noting the priority of government is seeing the budget implementation bill passed this session.

“The hearing aid program, the tax relief when it comes to basic personal exemption, all of those things don’t happen unless the budget gets passed,” the Steinbach MLA said.

He would not comment on whether government intends to introduce its own legislation making Sept. 30 a day off, deferring the matter to the minister responsible.

Last fall, when Bushie’s previous bill failed to pass, then-labour minister Reg Helwer said the government required more time to consider how the day should be recognized in Manitoba, citing “disagreement among everyone we’re consulting.”

The government said it would continue consultation with First Nations, Métis and Inuit groups and other stakeholders.

In March 2022, the province’s tasked its labour management review committee to consider whether Sept. 30 should be a statutory holiday. The committee’s consensus recommendation was to make the day akin to Remembrance Day, with all non-essential businesses closed.

The committee said it supported offering pay at time-and-a-half for people working Sept. 30, and no compensation for those with the day off.

First Nations leaders with the Southern Chiefs’ Organization and Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak said the day should be one of remembrance.

SCO Grand Chief Jerry Daniels said the group supports the bill and making Sept. 30 a “statutory day of remembrance.”

“This declaration is overdue,” Daniels said in a statement Thursday, noting SCO has not been consulted by the government.

“It is essential that Manitoba citizens have time, and are encouraged, to honour survivors and the children who did not return home and to reflect on and learn more about the inter-generational, lasting impacts of the residential school system in Manitoba.”

MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee said he met with the minister to discuss making Sept. 30 a day of remembrance, noting the word “holiday” is misleading and it must be a day to pause, reflect and honour survivors and children who did not come home.

“In that spirit, we wanted to ensure they were honoured and not forgotten,” Settee said. “We are encouraged that the private member’s bill passed second reading.”

On Thursday, Labour Minister Jon Reyes’s office declined to answer questions about whether it plans to introduce legislation to make Sept. 30 a day off, nor the current status of consultations.

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca