Over 1700 Ontarians have already been killed by COVID-19. And the vast majority of them died in long-term care. But if you live in a private, for-profit home, you’re much more likely to die from this virus. The for-profit long-term care industry is politically powerful and deeply entrenched. Is this their moment of reckoning? COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Sharleen Stewart (SEIU Healthcare), Natalie Mehra (Ontario Health Coalition) To learn more:  “Party of Profits: Ontario Tories and the profit motive in long-term care” by Zaid Noorsumar in Rank and File  “For-profit nursing homes have four times as many COVID-19 deaths as city-run homes, Star analysis finds” by Marco Chown Oved, Brendan Kennedy, Kenyon Wallace, Ed Tubb and Andrew Bailey in The Toronto Star  “40 Ontario nursing homes with the highest rates of reported abuse” by Valérie Ouellet, Dexter Brown in CBC Marketplace This episode is sponsored by WealthBar This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter.  Additional music:  I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod, adapted.  Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PANDEMIC 4 - Ontario Reaps its Dividends

COMMONS is a documentary podcast that proves Canada is anything but boring. Each season, host Arshy Mann guides you through the country’s dark underbelly, bringing you stories about crime, corruption and all manner of misdeeds.
This season will unmask the ever-present war on workers. And the many, many ways that workers have banded together to fight back against it. 
 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Society & Culture

Personal Journals

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

News

Politics

Documentary

True crime

This episode was originally published on November 24, 2021. 
Twenty-six men were working underground when an explosion tore through the Westray Mine in Nova Scotia. Their friends and colleagues went into the wreckage to try to save them.
The story of Westray is one of managerial malice and the heroism of everyday people. But why is it that governments let this happen over and over again, at the expense of so many lives?
Featured in this episode: Vernon Theriault, Tom Sandborn
To learn more:
Westray: My Journey From Darkness to Light by Vernon Theriault and Marjorie Coady
“Hell’s History” by Tom Sandborn in The Tyee
The Last Shift by CBC’s The Fifth Estate
Additional music from Audio Network
Sponsors: Douglas, AG1
If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody. 
You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

WORK 5 - The Westray Disaster

Migrant farm workers are the backbone of Canada’s agricultural economy. But because they can be fired and deported at will, their voices are rarely ever heard in this country.
But Gabriel Allahdua is one of the few who can now speak up. And the story he has to tell is startling.
It’s a story of racism and labour exploitation that goes back decades, even centuries. And it’s a prophecy of what is to come — that the hardships inflicted on migrant farm workers are only a trial run for the rest of us. 
This is the second episode in a two-part series on farm labour. 
Featured in this episode: Gabriel Allahdua, Chris Ramsaroop
To learn more:
Harvesting Freedom: The Life of a Migrant Worker in Canada by Gabriel Allahdua with Edward Dunsworth
“‘Overtly racist’: Lawsuit challenges Canada’s migrant farmworker system” by Jillian Kestler-D'Amours in Al-Jazeera
“Former Ontario seasonal farmworker speaks out about exploitation, files class action lawsuit” by Jon Woodward in CTV News
“The Canadian state and the racialization of Caribbean migrant farm labour 1947–1966” by Vic Satzewich in Ethnic and Racial Studies
Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)   Additional music from Audio Network
Sponsors: Rotman, AG1
If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody. 
You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

WORK 4 - Reaping the Whirlwind

The creation of the Canadian Farmworkers Union, as it would come to be called, was the first step in a struggle that continues to this day.
Because even now, farmworkers have far fewer rights than almost any other class of worker. And even today, the men and women who grow our food are subject to horrific working conditions and racial discrimination.
But to understand why the situation remains so bad, we need to go back in time to a moment when there was progress and hope. A moment when it looked like things might truly change for the better.
This is the first episode in a two-part series on farm labour. 
Featured in this episode: Raj Chouhan
To learn more:
A Time To Rise by Anand Patwardhan & Jim Munro
Union Zindabad!: South Asian Canadian Labour History in British Columbia by Donna Sacuta, Bailey Garden & Anushay Malik
“Charan Gill: An ‘Epic’ Life of Advocacy” by David P. Ball in The Tyee
“1983: The Year BC Citizens and Workers Fought Back” by Rod Mickleburgh in The Tyee
Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)   Additional music from Audio Network
Sponsors: Douglas, Athletic Greens 
If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody. 
You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime.

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

WORK 3 - Bitter Harvest

Across Canada, emergency rooms have been shutting down, leaving desperate people in the lurch. And at the heart of this health care crisis, is a labour crisis.
Nurses are leaving their jobs in droves, leaving hospitals understaffed and sometimes unable to carry out their most basic obligations.
In this episode, we'll tell you how nursing went from a profession hailed as heroic to one in an utter state of crisis, all through the eyes of a woman who lived through it all.
Featured in this episode: Nadira Ross
To learn more:
“How Canadian hospitals became dependent on expensive, out-of-town nurses” by Tu Thanh Ha, Kelly Grant and Stephanie Chambers in The Globe and Mail
“How nursing staffing agencies are costing Ontario hospitals untold millions” by Mike Crawley in CBC News 
Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)   Additional music from Audio Network
Sponsors: Douglas, AG1
If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody. 
You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

WORK 2 - State of Emergency Rooms

Labour has undergone a seismic shift over the past decade. 
The rise of gig work and temp agencies have made employment more precarious than ever. In the interest of profits, companies are turning more and more towards temporary foreign workers and international students for minimum wage jobs. And even for those with seemingly secure employment, wages and benefits continue to be squeezed. 
One thing seems clear: workers are getting screwed. 
This season of COMMONS will dig into the fascinating history and ever-changing present of what it means to be a worker in Canada.  
Featured in this episode: Jim Stanford
Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)
Additional music from Audio Network
Sponsors: Rotman, Douglas, AG1 
If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody. 
You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PANDEMIC 4 - Ontario Reaps its Dividends

Download our free app to listen on your phone