Work
We suggest:
- Human beings were made to work.
- Government policies should incentivize work.
- Everyone should have access to work and should receive just compensation for their labour, enabling them to have access to productive leisure.
- All work has dignity.
- The state, the market, and civil society (particularly institutions like unions) should work together to encourage just and meaningful work.
Supporting Research

Start Here
Ray Pennings,
Brian Dijkema
November 19, 2014
A social bias against employment in the skilled trades exists in this country. This culminating document of the Building Meaning project includes the Building Meaning in the Skilled Trades background paper, and our final series of recommendations for industry and labour stakeholders; educational institutions; governments; and researchers.

Brian Dijkema,
Morley Gunderson
December 17, 2019
There is a large hole in our public talk about work and wages. Reviewing the latest research, "Work is About More Than Money" uncovers the personal, social and psychological costs of unemployment. It identifies the missing pieces in our thinking and policymaking about labour to show why it is urgent to attend to the non-monetary benefits of work.

Sean Speer,
Sosina Bezu,
Renze Nauta
September 29, 2022
Canada’s New Working Class offers leaders a contemporary, modern understanding of the 6.5 million Canadians who are in the working class. One key finding is that members of Canada’s working class are as likely to be women or recent immigrants in sales or service jobs as they are to be men doing blue-collar, mostly unionized, manufacturing work. Canada's New Working Class busts stereotypes and outlines a true, inclusive working-class agenda.
Explorations

September 10, 2021
Join Mark Carney and Fr. Raymond de Souza as they sit down for a conversation on Mark’s latest book, Value(s): Building a Better World For All.

June 22, 2021
Join us as we Exit COVID: Toward what matters most.
Media Coverage


March 24, 2023
“We don’t yet see a full suite of policy proposals that meet the needs of that working class,” Brian Dijkema, vice-president of external affairs at Cardus, tells The Hill Times in this story about how political leaders should respond to the demands of working-class Canadians.
Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash


March 15, 2023
"It took a recent controversy in the Cowichan First Nation to expose the serious, fundamental problems with the [Community Benefits Agreement]," writes Renze Nauta, work and economics program director at Cardus. "The program has not only failed to meet its stated objectives, but that the objectives themselves are fundamentally misaligned against the public interest."
Photo by chandler denise on Unsplash


February 10, 2023
When it comes to child care, one size does not fit all. As Cardus's Renze Nauta explains on AM640 in Toronto, that's why the federal-provincial $10-a-day child care deal doesn't help Canada's working class families.
Work
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What else are we working toward?
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects
Strong Family Projects
Human Dignity Projects
Religious Freedom Projects
Healthy Community Projects
Formative Education Projects
Recent Projects