October 1 2025

This week, the members of NUPGE’s nine advisory committees will be gathering in Ottawa, with the cost of living at the centre of their meeting’s agenda.

Committees do vital work advising the union, each bringing unique expertise and perspectives on complex issues. At this orientation, which marks the start of their new mandate, committee members will collaborate with each other to confront a crisis that’s impacting every household across the country: the growing struggle to afford the basics of life.

The high cost of living in recent years has been driven by price increases for essentials, particularly housing, food, and energy, due to corporate greed and a lack of government regulation and investment. Wages have not kept pace with rising costs.

Income and wealth inequality have hit record highs, as the rich get richer and corporate profits soar, while most people can’t make ends meet. The affordability crisis is affecting every worker, but those from equity-seeking communities are experiencing it more acutely, both in terms of rising costs and exacerbated inequities in pay and employment rates.

Instead of addressing the root causes of the crisis, too many politicians are falling back on failed formulas: promising tax cuts and austerity, scapegoating migrant workers and international students, and blaming climate action by claiming we can’t afford to meet our obligations or people’s needs. This is false.

Governments can make life more affordable through robust public services, tackling corporate greed and inequality, and taking bold action on climate change. And these efforts will bolster a stronger, more resilient economy in the face of instability.

Cost of living has been a theme at the bargaining table and in strikes. Workers are rising up to demand fairer wages and working conditions and to fight for the future of public services, as we see in the ongoing BCGEU public service strike and OPSEU/SEFPO colleges strike.

At NUPGE’s Triennial Convention in June, delegates adopted a policy paper on the affordability crisis that discusses the root causes and identifies solutions. Tackling the cost-of-living crisis is a theme across NUPGE’s work, from housing to health care, and tax fairness to equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility.

The Convention paper and debate informed NUPGE’s pre-budget submission to the federal government. NUPGE underscored measures like funding non-market housing, investing in public services like health care and education, making the tax system fairer, and honouring commitments and obligations to Indigenous peoples.

With the return of Parliament, NUPGE is calling on the federal government to take real, concrete action to address the affordability crisis.