One of the largest labour unions in Canada has sounded the alarm about one of the most talked-about issues of the day – the Canada Pension Plan.

The Alberta Federation of Labour said in a recently released report that the government needed to take into account the growing number of retiree’s needs and that they needed to extend the CPP in order to help those who do not have enough to retire. Gil McGowan, the group’s president said that the government needed to help the business sector.

“The government has taken some steps in the right direction to improve health and safety at work, but Alberta can – and must – do better,” says Gil McGowan, president of the AFL. “As the economy picks up, especially in the oil patch and construction sectors, the government needs to take immediate action to improve health and safety. If simple changes aren’t made today, Alberta will return to the highest number of workplace fatalities in Canada. Only last month, three workers died in workplace accidents in three days.”

Elected in 2005, McGowan has been tasked with representing workers from all different sectors of the Canadian workforce. Small and large businesses rely on unions to give employees a voice.

NEBS, Fri Nov 19 2010