Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives Are Wolves in Workers’ Clothing

Being Canadian has become an unaffordable fantasy for many, a major political touchpoint moving into the upcoming federal election. Since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party took office in 2015, Canada’s working class has faced mounting economic pressures, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Housing affordability has declined significantly, with average rents and home prices climbing steadily. In October 2015, the average home price in Canada was $453,000; by June 2024, it had risen to $697,000. The general cost of living is also a growing concern—in spring 2024, 45 per cent of Canadians reported that rising prices were significantly impacting their ability to meet day-to-day expenses, a 12 per cent increase from two years earlier. All of this, in tandem, has fueled mounting frustration with the current government and intensified calls for change.

For Canadians seeking economic relief, change appears to be coming from Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative party. Poilievre has shrewdly identified the cost of living as a significant issue, and as a result, Conservatives have plastered their campaign with rhetoric around class solidarity and government responsibility, effectively tapping into widespread affordability concerns across the country. According to recent polling, 39 per cent of Canadians who consider themselves lower class and 47 per cent of working class Canadians plan on voting Conservative. Meanwhile, Jagmeet Singh’s NDP, which has long been considered the political champion for working class interests, is only polling at 20 per cent among these demographics.

With this demographic realignment, will the Conservatives genuinely become champions of the working class? The answer is a resounding no. While Poilievre proudly claims he has spoken to more local unions than corporate business crowds and his Conservatives voted to support a bill banning replacement workers during strikes, his proposed solutions tell a different story. For example, despite his rhetoric on the housing crisis, Poilievre’s primary solution is the pointedly named “Building Homes Not Bureaucracy Act” that focuses on deregulation without provisions for subsidized housing or rent caps. As a career politician who has consistently supported pro-business policies throughout his two decades as an MP, his ideological commitment to free-market solutions fundamentally contradicts the collective action principles that underpin the labour movement.

Thus, while Poilievre’s rhetoric leads with class consciousness, it all appears to be a ruse for his own power. Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary and former national director of the NDP, aptly noted: “You’ve never seen [Poilievre] on a picket line,” and “When push comes to shove, and workers need support from their political leaders, we’ve never seen him there.” Poilievre has never, and will never, create on-the-ground action for workers. His opportunist ploy for power will be completely meaningless when he gains, as he hopes, a comfortable majority for the Conservative party in the upcoming federal election. This has been made clear by his voting history over his decades in government.

Still, the Conservative Party’s surge in working-class support is largely due to a void left by the NDP. In recent years, the NDP has shifted toward representing the urban elite, prioritizing social justice over labour issues. Moreover, under Singh, the NDP’s propping up of the Liberal minority government—even when its policies have fallen short of fully backing workers—has fueled a sense of betrayal, pushing working class voters to seek an alternative. Until the NDP reclaims its mantle as the true champion of working Canadians, the Conservatives’ hollow appeals to class solidarity will keep filling the void, leaving ordinary Canadians to pay the price.

Edited by Willa Morrison 

Featured image: “Image“ by Andrew Scheer is licensed under CC0 1.0.