CAW Local 88 calls on federal government to reverse its decision to eliminate the mandatory long form Canada census questionnaire.
The Harper government is moving to eliminate the Canada census long form questionnaire and replace it with a voluntary survey. The long form was sent to 20% of households and is a critical source of information about diversity, employment, income, education and other characteristics of Canadians. It is essential to business, research, planning and good public policies and programs. Stakeholders ranging from the business community, to university researchers to social justice advocates are raising their voices to oppose this move.
Here is letter sent by CAW Local 88 to Prime Minister Harper today;
July 29, 2010
Right Honourable Stephen Harper
Prime Minister of Canada
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
Re: Canada Census-Long Form Questionnaire
Dear Prime Minister
I am writing this letter as the president of CAW Local 88, our local union represents over 2,400 member and their families in and around Ingersoll, Ontario.
I write you to tell you that the membership of CAW Local 88 and CAW members from across Canada are concerned about the elimination of the “Canada Census Long Form Questionnaire”.
The Long Form Questionnaire (which has been in place for decades) provides vital information on Canadians, their health and social status and the status of their communities. It gathers data on important things like household income, housing, educational status, jobs and a host of other areas. This info helps guide Canadian policy-makers, businesses, planners, researchers and government officials in their quest to make informed decisions on the use of public resources, to build our country.
When asked, your Conservative government says they’re making the change for privacy reasons. Government shouldn’t force anyone to fill out a survey, no matter how important it is. And, according to them, they’re acting on the wishes of Canadians who’ve expressed widespread complaints that the survey is “coercive” and “intrusive”. Well, in fact, the overwhelming majority of Canadians don’t see it this way. Canada’s Privacy Commissioner received only 3 complaints since the year 2000 on issues related to the Census questionnaire. There’s also no record of this issue being raised through a petition, or other collaborative means, in the House of Commons.
This move by the federal government will weaken the quality and availability of data that tells us what is happening to employment, immigration, housing, incomes and education. These are the very issues that beg for the best policy decisions possible as we inch our way through recovery.
The membership and leadership of CAW Local 88 demand that you reinstate the Canada Census Long Form Questionnaire. The information collected through this form is critical to understanding the character and diversity of Canada. The Long Form Questionnaire is an essential tool to enable business and social planning, research and development of programs for the well-being of Canadians.
I look forward to your reply and am happy to discuss this matter with you at your earliest convenience.
Yours truly,
Dan Borthwick
President
CAW Local 88
Cc
Executive Board CAW Local 88
David MacKenzie, MP of Oxford
Gilles Duceppe, Leader of Bloc Quebecois
Jack Layton, Leader of NDP
Michael Ignatieff, Leader of Liberal
Call your MP and let them know your concerns!!!!
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