September 16, 2022

Treaty 1 and Dakota Territory, Homeland of the Red River Métis Nation, Winnipeg MB— While front line workers for Manitoba Hydro were forced to picket for fair wages, the PC’s appointed Hydro board met to discuss a bonus for their CEO behind closed doors. Today the NDP demanded PCs share whether or not they approved that bonus.

“Manitobans work hard and pay their fair share. In return they want a government that helps them get ahead. But the PCs are giving bonuses to CEOs and tax breaks to billionaires while regular people pay more on their monthly Hydro bill,” said NDP Leader Wab Kinew. “That’s not fair. The NDP is working for families not CEOs.”

On July 12^th Premier Stefansons’s hand-picked Hydro board met in-camera to discuss the CEO’s year-end compensation. Meanwhile, 240 Hydro workers represented by UNIFOR were on strike demanding fair wage increase after years without a contract, a year after IBEW workers were on strike for fair wages.

Kinew demanded the PCs say whether or not they opted to give the CEO a bonus in the middle of a workers strike.  

“Under Stefanson’s PCs the rich get richer while regular people pay more. They are cutting services in order to give handouts to billionaires and corporations,” said Kinew. “They’ve raised your Hydro bills by $550 a year since taking office and they plan to raise it even more with Bill 36. Only the NDP will stop the handouts and put families first.”