CAPITOLISM & FREE ENTERPRISE

Today's Waterloo Region Record advises us that 283 workers died in Pakistan. Not in a year and not in a decade. The title of the article is "283 killed in factory fires; lax safety blamed". 258 died in a Karachi factory fire and 25 more in a different factory in Lahore on the same night! Many of those dead were "...trapped behind locked doors and barred windows- highlighting the atrocious working conditions in a country where workplaces often lack basic safety equipment and owners bribe officials to ignore the violations.". A local analyst was quoted as saying the fire was one of the deadliest in the country's history and "It is reflective of the utter collapse of regulation and the enforcement of labour laws in the country".

Closer to home where it's easier to look smugly down our noses at "backward" countries around the world we have this tiny article in yesterday's Waterloo Region Record: "Death of migrant worker 13th in Ontario this year". The 38 year old Mexican migrant worker died at an orchard operation in Prince Edward County. Last spring we had multiple fatalities of migrant workers in Hampstead, just west of Kitchener. Our wonderful Ontario Ministry of Labour are investigating. They are about twice as effective as our Ministry of Environment which isn't saying much at all. The question in my mind is what direction are we going in? Is Pakistan improving and moving towards a Canadian model of on the job health and safety or is the new economy, fewer and weaker unions and mass unemployment leading Ontario and Canada in the direction of third world countries? If capitolism, free enterprise and right wing politicians have their way we will join places like India, Vietnam and Pakistan where labour is cheap and life has even less value to the powerful.