Policies - Human Rights

2SLGBTQIA+ Refugees — Access to Clean Water — Barriers to Transition — Basic Income — Child Care Services — Gendered Language — Living Wage — Pension Protection in case of Bankruptcy — Respecting Workers’ Right to Organize

Human Rights – 2SLGBTQIA+ Refugees

Date of Approval: 28 May 2023

Whereas:

Gender dysphoria has significant negative impacts on the mental and physical health of transgender individuals;
Recently, many US states have been successful in their push to reduce and ban gender- affirming care for transgender individuals¹;
There are 64 countries where homosexuality is still illegal², eleven of which still allow the death penalty for consensual same-sex acts³; and
Availability of gender-affirming care is important, even when individuals aren’t being directly persecuted, the stripping and banning of gender-affirming services is in itself a form of persecution;

Be It Resolved:

Although not within the direct purview of provincial jurisdiction, the Green Party of Manitoba advocates for the federal government’s provision of refugee status to 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals who are subject to persecution and/or cannot legally and safely obtain gender affirming care gender-affirming care in their home country, and the repealment of the safe third country agreement; and
The Green Party of Manitoba supports the Manitoba government committing to developing dedicated safe spaces for 2SLGBTQIA+ refugees and housing at least 750 2SLGBTQIA+ refugees before 2028, equivalent to approximately 10% of the annual refugees received by Manitoba each year⁴.

Human Rights – Access to Clean Water

Whereas:

Federal, provincial and municipal governments each have varying levels of regulations and responsibilities for protecting and providing clean water to its citizens;
Although thirteen boil water advisories have been resolved since 2015, as of March 2023 there were still three long-term boil water advisories in place in Manitoba, all affecting indigenous communities, including Mathias Colomb Cree Nation, Shamattawa First Nation and Tataskweyak Cree Nation ^1,2. United Nations resolution 64/292 recognizes the right to water and sanitation and acknowledges that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realization of all human rights ³, and
Water sources on First Nations and small communities are disproportionately damaged by human activities that contaminate aquifers and watersheds ⁴.

Be it resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

Guaranteeing that all communities have access to clean drinking water, and making it an urgent priority to resolve the outstanding long-term boil water advisories;
Implementing consistent water protections in all communities across Manitoba, so that no communities, including indigenous communities, are more likely to suffer from long term polluted water supply in future;
Working in consultation with indigenous communities, to support solutions for access to clean water that are led by affected communities, and
Supporting the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs in their desire to establish a Manitoba First Nations Water and Wastewater Authority that would be mandated by and accountable to the elected First Nations leadership in Manitoba.

References:

1. AMC Expresses Concerns Over Escalating Health Conditions for First Nations Experiencing Long Term Boil Water Advisories – Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, 23 February 2023. [https://manitobachiefs.com/press_releases/amc-expresses-concerns-over-escalating-health-conditions-for-first-nations-experiencing-long-term-boil-water-advisories/#:~:text=In%20Manitoba%2C%20approximately%2013%20boil,and%20Sayisi%20Dene%20First%20Nation]
2. ‘We have to fix it faster’: 28 First Nations communities still under boil water advisories – Global News, 22 March 2023 [https://globalnews.ca/news/9571066/first-nations-drinking-water-issues-world-water-day-2023/]
3. About water and sanitation, OHCHR and the right to water and sanitation – United Nations Human Rights [https://www.ohchr.org/en/water-and-sanitation/about-water-and-sanitation#:~:text=On%2028%20July%202010%2C%20the,RES%2F64%2F292)]
4. Lack of Clean Drinking Water in Indigenous communities – The Indigenous Foundation [https://www.theindigenousfoundation.org/articles/lack-of-clean-drinking-water-in-indigenous-communities#:~:text=Specifically%2C%20Indigenous%20communities%20are%20vulnerable,funding%20to%20combat%20water%20contamination.]

Human Rights – Barriers to Transition

Date of Approval: 28 May 2023

Whereas:

The legal transition and name change processes¹ are currently long, costly, invasive and emotionally taxing;
Gender-affirming healthcare can be particularly hard to access in remote or rural areas; and
A lack of dedicated gender-affirming care clinics in Manitoba has resulted in unreasonably long wait times for affordable gender-affirming care²;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

The elimination of the fingerprinting requirement for a legal name change in Manitoba for individuals without a criminal record;
The elimination of all fees involved in the legal name change process;
The elimination of all fees involved in changing the gender marker on provincially regulated identification;
The elimination of all fees involved in the replacement of Identification documents following legal change of name or gender marker;
The establishment of dedicated gender-affirming care clinics in each regional health authority and urban centre across the province of Manitoba;
Requiring all general-practice physicians and nurse practitioners to receive training in respecting and caring for transgender individuals, including basic training on the prescription and maintenance of puberty blockers and hormone-replacement therapies
Using reasonable, patient-centred, informed-consent procedures to determine eligibility for gender affirming care rather than mental assessments or requiring diagnosis of gender dysphoria; and
Requiring that no individual wait more than 90 days to meet with a specialist following referral to a dedicated gender-affirming care clinic.

References

Human Rights – Basic Income

Approved: 2002
Revisions Approved: 28 May 2023

Whereas:

Income poverty continues to increase in Manitoba and is particularly high among non-elderly single persons and single parent households;
The Guaranteed Annual Incomes provided to seniors in Canada have helped to substantially reduce their poverty rates to very low levels over the last 40 years;
Manitoba has a patchwork system of income supports for non-elderly low-income households that provide inadequate level of benefits and are expensive to operate;
CERB(2020) provided a much needed safety net to many Canadians during the COVID Pandemic, it was hastily implemented and resulted in confusing tax clawbacks and rebates. Such complexity often makes programs less accessible for people in need.
Climate change increases the risk of emerging diseases and health issues and requires a well-crafted Basic Income system.
The Federal EI program provides inadequate protection to adults who experience job loss or health crises
Resources to assist people through crises, from critical health issues to escaping abusive relationships, are complex and difficult to access, just at a time when people may not have the personal resources to navigate the complexity. This can increase costs on social programs and critical health care; and
A secure source of income can reduce the demand for costly health, justice and child welfare services and improve educational and housing outcomes;

Be it resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

A basic income program for Manitoba, with the aim to replace the patchwork of social assistance programs currently administered by the provincial government.This would be done with the financial help and participation of the federal government, but is not dependent on Federal participation.

Human Rights – Child Care Services

Approved: 2013
Revised and Approved: 2019

Whereas:

High quality early learning and childcare (ELCC) services promote children’s holistic development and supports their parents;
ELCC services are essential for women’s equality, help reconcile work and family, encourage social cohesion, social justice and solidarity, and are a recommended call for action by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission; and
Universal childcare services help to reduce poverty, support the labour market, and promote a green and sustainable economy;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

A long-term vision of universally accessible, high quality, affordable early learning and childcare services for all children and families who wish to use them; and
Working towards implementing this vision, taking into consideration the recommendations of the Manitoba Early Learning and Child Care Commission, 2016.

Human Rights – Gendered Language

Date of Approval: 28 May 2023

Whereas:

The inclusion of gender on government ID lacks utility in identifying, and gender-based profiling undermines ID security and authenticity. It simultaneously creates confusion for those examining the ID and causes harm for the individual being identified;
The gender marker on many pieces of government identification, such as a birth certificate, holds no practical significance throughout the life of a cisgender individual. Consequently, it primarily serves as an arbitrary obstacle to gender transition; and
While some important steps have been made to allow gender-neutral documentation, inconsistencies among various bodies and regulations create confusing and potentially hazardous legal loopholes;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports

The removal of the gender marker on provincially regulated non-medical government ID, including, but not limited to birth certificates, drivers licenses, degrees and diplomas, professional licenses and certifications, student cards, or deeds;
Mandating the removal of the gender marker, including gendered honorifics, on documents that often serve as auxiliary pieces of identification, including privately distributed documents that are often used as proof of address; and
The amendment and replacement of gendered language with gender neutral language in all current and future legislation and government policy in Manitoba.

Human Rights – Living Wage

Reviewed: 2017, 2022
Approved: 12 February 2023

Whereas:

Single non-elderly adults have the highest poverty rates and greatest depth of poverty of all demographic groups in Manitoba;
Of all demographic groups, working-age single adults are the most dependent on wage earnings to escape poverty;
Minimum wage rates should be equivalent to a living wage (i.e. a level that allows workers to escape poverty); and
The Market Basket Measure (MBM) threshold of poverty is the most accurate measure of the cost of living for low income Manitobans;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

Manitoba’s minimum wage rate be set at that level that allows a single working-age adult working full time, full year to achieve an after-tax income equal to the weighted average MBM low income threshold for Manitoba; and
Annually indexing this wage rate to the most current MBM threshold. For November, 2022 the minimum rate would be $ 16.75¹ an hour.

References

Manitoba Living Wage | Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Human Rights – Pension Protection in case of Bankruptcy

Reviewed: Nov 2022
Approved: 12 February 2023

Whereas:

Pension benefits and the capital and earnings of the pension trust funds created by workers’ contributions and the contributions of their employers are vulnerable to being lost to employees in cases of employer bankruptcy;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba:

Supports revising bankruptcy laws so as to prevent any employer in bankruptcy from gaining possession of the Pension Trust Fund, its capital, and its earnings which that employer administers in trust.

Human Rights – Respecting Workers’ right to Organize

Approved: 2009
Revised and Approved: 9 July 2024

Whereas:

Union membership and collective bargaining help reduce economic inequality ^1,2;
Collective bargaining raises wages and benefits more for low-wage workers;
Recent pressures on labour relations such as Right-to-Work legislation has resulted in downward trends in wages and increased inequity ³;
Union activity can improve workplace productivity and efficiency ⁴, and
Unions help shape progressive and inclusive policies throughout society, including health and safety, employment standards, healthy democracies, and quality of work life ⁵.

Be it resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

Protecting and encouraging collective bargaining, and
Strengthening protections against discrimination based on union activities by enshrining existing Labour Relations Act protections in the Manitoba Human Rights Act, to be administered by the Manitoba Human Rights Commission.

Be it further resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba opposes the implementation of Right-to-Work legislation.

References:

1. The Benefits of Collective Bargaining – Economic Policy Institute, 14 April 2015 [https://www.epi.org/publication/benefits-of-collective-bargaining/]
2. Unions and Wage Inequlity – Card, Lemieux, Riddell, University of California, Berkeley [https://davidcard.berkeley.edu/papers/union-wage.pdf]
3. Right-to-Work Laws, Unionization, and Wage Setting – Fortin, Lemieux, Lloyd, National Bureau of Economic Research, June 2022 [https://www.nber.org/papers/w30098]
4. Unions and Democracy – Christopher Schenk, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, April 2014 [https://policyalternatives.ca/sites/default/files/uploads/publications/2014/04/unions_and_democracy.pdf]
5. Unions are not only good for workers, they’re good for communities and for democracy – Banerjee, Poydock, McNichola, Mangundayao, Sait, Economic Policy Institute, 15 December 2021 [https://www.epi.org/publication/unions-and-well-being/]