Becky Barrett
Encyclopedia
Becky Barrett is a retired politician
in Manitoba
, Canada
. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
from 1990 to 2003, and was a cabinet minister in the New Democratic Party
(NDP) government of Gary Doer
from 1999 to 2003.
, USA, and moved to Canada in 1975. She has a Master's degree
in social work from the University of Manitoba
(1979), and was a social worker before entering political life. Barrett was the Manitoba NDP's director of organization during the 1980s.
, defeating Liberal
candidate Ernie Gilroy
by over 1,200 votes. The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
won a majority government
in this election, and Barrett was appointed as the New Democratic Party's family services critic in opposition. In June 1991, she criticized Premier
Gary Filmon
's sudden announcement that Winnipeg
's child and family services would be brought under a single agency. Barrett later criticized the Filmon government for cutting several Manitobans from social assistance programs without making investments in education, job creation program
s and skills upgrading. She also brought forward a private member's bill
that, if passed, would have required the Manitoba Office of the Children's Advocate
to report to the legislature rather than the Minister of Family Services
.
Barrett also served as her party's justice critic. She called on the Filmon government remove provincial judge Bruce McDonald
from office in 1993, after McDonald was reported as telling a female complainant to "work something out" with a man accused of assaulting her. McDonald was later forced to resign from the bench after the Winnipeg Free Press uncovered a pattern of questionable behaviour in his decisions. Barrett also called for Manitoba to ban pellet guns in 1993, when a 14-year-old girl required hospitalization after being shot in the leg.
Barrett led the Manitoba NDP's candidate search committee in the buildup to the 1995 provincial election
, and placed an emphasis on recruiting women and minority candidates. She was personally re-elected, defeating her Liberal opponent by almost 2,000 votes. The Progressive Conservatives won a second majority government provincially, and Barrett was named as her party's urban affairs critic. In May 1998, she unveiled her party's platform for revitalizing the city of Winnipeg. Highlights of the platform included giving more power to city councillors and residents' associations, providing tax incentives for inner city renewal, guaranteeing stable funding for schools, renewing several aboriginal programs and enacting a new anti-gang policy.
. Barrett did not run for re-election in Wellington, but instead challenged popular Liberal
incumbent Kevin Lamoureux
in the neighbouring division of Inkster. She won by 143 votes. Barrett was regarded as a strong ally of incoming premier Gary Doer
, and there was little surprise when she was chosen as a member of his first cabinet.
Barrett was sworn in as Minister of Labour on October 5, 1999, with responsibility for administering the Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation Act
and the Workers Compensation Act, as well as for the Civil Service and Multiculturalism
. On January 17, 2001, her position was renamed as the Minister of Labour and Immigration, and she was relieved of responsibility for the Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation Act and the Civil Service.
Labour
Barrett's primary accomplishment in office was to reform Manitoba's labour laws, reversing many of the decisions made by the right-wing government of Gary Filmon during the 1990s. Her reform legislation, introduced in July 2000, made union certification automatic if 65% of employees sign membership cards, allowed interim certifications, ensured that employees would not be fired for convictions involving minor offenses, and gave employees the exclusive right to approve or reject arbitration if a labour dispute dragged on more than sixty days. Barrett argued that the changes were necessary to correct a decade of imbalance under the previous government. The bill was met with intense opposition from the business community and, in response to criticism, Barrett changed the bill to give either party in a labour dispute the right to call for binding arbitration after sixty days. Barrett also allowed parents to take more time off work after the birth of their children, and increased Manitoba's minimum wage
by 25 cents for every year of her tenure in office.
Following extensive consultations, Barrett subsequently introduced reforms to Manitoba's workplace safety legislation in 2002. These changes gave workplace safety and health inspectors the right to fine employers who ignore safety violations, required employers to ensure their workers receive proper safety training, and required a written health and safety program for all workplaces with more than twenty employees. Some business groups again opposed these messages, though on this occasion Barrett received support from the labour movement and the Winnipeg Free Press
newspaper. Barrett's reforms also made Manitoba the first province in Canada to provide compensation for firefighters who develop certain types of cancer while on the job.
Barrett established an arm's-length complaints office for Manitoba's Autopac program in April 2000, and signed an official proclamation in the same month to commemorate the 13 Winnipeg civic workers who had been killed on the job since 1978. One month later, she announced the hiring of eight new workplace safety and health inspectors. She announced a new round of civil service hiring in early 2001, with a particular focus on employment equity. Late in her term, she announced that Winnipeg paramedics would be added to a list of essential services
not allowed to strike.
Barrett also held a series of public hearings into Manitoba's pension legislation in 2003, in the first full review of the legislation since 1984.
Immigration
Shortly after her appointment to cabinet in 1999, Barrett successfully pressured the federal government
to more the double the number of immigrants Manitoba was able to recruit for skilled jobs. Manitoba's percentage of Canadian immigration increased in the years that followed, and the federal government again increased the number of targeted recruitment positions in 2001, 2002 and 2003. In 2001, the Doer government introduced a medical licensing program to bring foreign-trained doctors into Canadian practice. Barrett also worked with the federal government to ensure Canada's ratification of the International Labour Organization
's convention 182 against child labour.
Multiculturalism
Barrett introduced legislation in 2000 to recognize Holocaust Memorial Day in Manitoba.
Retirement
The opposition Progressive Conservatives targeted Barrett as a vulnerable minister after the business community's harsh response to her labour reforms in 2000. She was also criticized for approving a plan that would have allowed Manitoba Public Insurance
to divert part of its annual surplus to infrastructural repairs at three Manitoba universities in late 2000. This plan provoked significant opposition, and was later reversed.
In late 2002, Barrett announced that she would not be a candidate in the next provincial election
. Her last major act in office was to sign a new agreement with federal Immigration Minister
Denis Coderre
in June 2003, to increase the total immigration to Manitoba to 10,000 persons per year.
's successful bid to lead the federal New Democratic Party
in 1995. She later served on a committee that reviewed the federal New Democratic Party
's outreach strategy in 2001, and supported Bill Blaikie
's campaign to become leader of the federal NDP in 2002-03. Barrett ran federal Member of Parliament
Pat Martin
's re-election campaign in the 2006 federal election
.
released a report that was strongly critical of the management of the Manitoba Workers Compensation Board under its former chairman, Wally Fox-Decent. In the resulting controversy, it was noted that Barrett had received a written complaint about Fox-Decent from former WCB chief executive officer Pat Jacobsen in March 2001. Barrett chose to refer the matter back to the WCB board of directors, a decision that some critics later described as an abdication of ministerial responsibility. Barrett's successor Nancy Allan
argued that she acted properly, as the WCB board held legal authority over the matter. For his part, Fox-Decent rejected Jacobsen's complaint as a "poison pen" letter from a disgruntled employee.
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
in Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba and the lieutenant governor form the Legislature of Manitoba, the legislature of the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly in provincial general elections, all in single-member constituencies with first-past-the-post...
from 1990 to 2003, and was a cabinet minister in the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party of Manitoba
The New Democratic Party of Manitoba is a social-democratic political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is the provincial wing of the federal New Democratic Party, and is a successor to the Manitoba Co-operative Commonwealth Federation...
(NDP) government of Gary Doer
Gary Doer
Gary Albert Doer, OM is a Canadian diplomat and politician from Manitoba, Canada. Since October 19, 2009, he has served as Canada's Ambassador to the United States...
from 1999 to 2003.
Early life and career
Barrett was born in FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, USA, and moved to Canada in 1975. She has a Master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in social work from the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
(1979), and was a social worker before entering political life. Barrett was the Manitoba NDP's director of organization during the 1980s.
Opposition member (1990-99)
Barrett was elected in the north-end Winnipeg riding of Wellington in the 1990 provincial electionManitoba general election, 1990
The Manitoba general election of September 11, 1990 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the Progressive Conservative Party, which took 30 out of 57 seats...
, defeating Liberal
Manitoba Liberal Party
The Manitoba Liberal Party is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late nineteenth-century, following the province's creation in 1870.-Origins and early development :...
candidate Ernie Gilroy
Ernie Gilroy
Ernie Gilroy is an administrator and politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a member of the Winnipeg City Council from 1986 to 1992, and was a member of the city's executive policy committee during Bill Norrie's administration. Gilroy is also a senior organizer with the Manitoba Liberal Party,...
by over 1,200 votes. The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba is the only right wing political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is also the official opposition party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.-Origins and early years:...
won a majority government
Majority government
A majority government is when the governing party has an absolute majority of seats in the legislature or parliament in a parliamentary system. This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from...
in this election, and Barrett was appointed as the New Democratic Party's family services critic in opposition. In June 1991, she criticized Premier
Premier of Manitoba
The Premier of Manitoba is the first minister for the Canadian province of Manitoba. He or she is the province's head of government and de facto chief executive. Until the early 1970s, the title "Prime Minister of Manitoba" was used frequently. Afterwards, the word Premier, derived from the French...
Gary Filmon
Gary Filmon
Gary Albert Filmon, PC, OC, OM is a Manitoba politician. He was the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba from 1983 to 2000, and served as the 19th Premier from 1988 to 1999.-Early life and municipal career:...
's sudden announcement that Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
's child and family services would be brought under a single agency. Barrett later criticized the Filmon government for cutting several Manitobans from social assistance programs without making investments in education, job creation program
Job creation program
Job Creation Programs are programs or projects undertaken by a government of a nation to assist unemployed members of the population in securing employment. A cornerstone of Keynesian economics, they are especially common during time of high unemployment...
s and skills upgrading. She also brought forward a private member's bill
Private Member's Bill
A member of parliament’s legislative motion, called a private member's bill or a member's bill in some parliaments, is a proposed law introduced by a member of a legislature. In most countries with a parliamentary system, most bills are proposed by the government, not by individual members of the...
that, if passed, would have required the Manitoba Office of the Children's Advocate
Manitoba Office of the Children's Advocate
The Office of the Children's Advocate of Manitoba is an independent office of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. Its stated purpose is "to represent the rights, interests and viewpoints of children and youth who are receiving, or should be receiving, services as prescribed under The Child and...
to report to the legislature rather than the Minister of Family Services
Minister of Family Services (Manitoba)
The Minister of Family Services is a former cabinet position in the government of Manitoba, Canada. The position was created in 1990, and was incorporated into the successor ministry of Family Services and Housing in 1999....
.
Barrett also served as her party's justice critic. She called on the Filmon government remove provincial judge Bruce McDonald
Bruce McDonald (judge)
Bruce P. McDonald was a provincial court judge in Manitoba, Canada. He resigned in 1993, following controversy about racist and sexist statements he had made from the bench.-Early career:...
from office in 1993, after McDonald was reported as telling a female complainant to "work something out" with a man accused of assaulting her. McDonald was later forced to resign from the bench after the Winnipeg Free Press uncovered a pattern of questionable behaviour in his decisions. Barrett also called for Manitoba to ban pellet guns in 1993, when a 14-year-old girl required hospitalization after being shot in the leg.
Barrett led the Manitoba NDP's candidate search committee in the buildup to the 1995 provincial election
Manitoba general election, 1995
The Manitoba general election of April 25,1995 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the Progressive Conservative Party, which won 31 seats out of 57...
, and placed an emphasis on recruiting women and minority candidates. She was personally re-elected, defeating her Liberal opponent by almost 2,000 votes. The Progressive Conservatives won a second majority government provincially, and Barrett was named as her party's urban affairs critic. In May 1998, she unveiled her party's platform for revitalizing the city of Winnipeg. Highlights of the platform included giving more power to city councillors and residents' associations, providing tax incentives for inner city renewal, guaranteeing stable funding for schools, renewing several aboriginal programs and enacting a new anti-gang policy.
Minister of Labour and Immigration (1999-2003)
The New Democratic Party won a majority government in the 1999 provincial electionManitoba general election, 1999
The Manitoba general election of September 21, 1999 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada....
. Barrett did not run for re-election in Wellington, but instead challenged popular Liberal
Manitoba Liberal Party
The Manitoba Liberal Party is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late nineteenth-century, following the province's creation in 1870.-Origins and early development :...
incumbent Kevin Lamoureux
Kevin Lamoureux
Kevin Lamoureux, MP is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. On November 29, 2010, he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons for the constituency of Winnipeg North in a by-election. He was re-elected during the 2011 election by 44 votes...
in the neighbouring division of Inkster. She won by 143 votes. Barrett was regarded as a strong ally of incoming premier Gary Doer
Gary Doer
Gary Albert Doer, OM is a Canadian diplomat and politician from Manitoba, Canada. Since October 19, 2009, he has served as Canada's Ambassador to the United States...
, and there was little surprise when she was chosen as a member of his first cabinet.
Barrett was sworn in as Minister of Labour on October 5, 1999, with responsibility for administering the Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation Act
Minister charged with the administration of The Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation Act
The Minister charged with the administration of The Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation Act is a minister in the Executive Council of Manitoba...
and the Workers Compensation Act, as well as for the Civil Service and Multiculturalism
Minister responsible for Multiculturalism (Manitoba)
The Minister responsible for Multiculturalism is a government position in the province of Manitoba, Canada. The position was created in 1991, when Bonnie Mitchelson was designated as Minister of Multiculturalism in the government of Gary Filmon...
. On January 17, 2001, her position was renamed as the Minister of Labour and Immigration, and she was relieved of responsibility for the Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation Act and the Civil Service.
Labour
Barrett's primary accomplishment in office was to reform Manitoba's labour laws, reversing many of the decisions made by the right-wing government of Gary Filmon during the 1990s. Her reform legislation, introduced in July 2000, made union certification automatic if 65% of employees sign membership cards, allowed interim certifications, ensured that employees would not be fired for convictions involving minor offenses, and gave employees the exclusive right to approve or reject arbitration if a labour dispute dragged on more than sixty days. Barrett argued that the changes were necessary to correct a decade of imbalance under the previous government. The bill was met with intense opposition from the business community and, in response to criticism, Barrett changed the bill to give either party in a labour dispute the right to call for binding arbitration after sixty days. Barrett also allowed parents to take more time off work after the birth of their children, and increased Manitoba's minimum wage
Minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
by 25 cents for every year of her tenure in office.
Following extensive consultations, Barrett subsequently introduced reforms to Manitoba's workplace safety legislation in 2002. These changes gave workplace safety and health inspectors the right to fine employers who ignore safety violations, required employers to ensure their workers receive proper safety training, and required a written health and safety program for all workplaces with more than twenty employees. Some business groups again opposed these messages, though on this occasion Barrett received support from the labour movement and the Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg Free Press
The Winnipeg Free Press is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Founded in 1872, as the Manitoba Free Press, it is the oldest newspaper in western Canada. It is the newspaper with the largest readership in the province....
newspaper. Barrett's reforms also made Manitoba the first province in Canada to provide compensation for firefighters who develop certain types of cancer while on the job.
Barrett established an arm's-length complaints office for Manitoba's Autopac program in April 2000, and signed an official proclamation in the same month to commemorate the 13 Winnipeg civic workers who had been killed on the job since 1978. One month later, she announced the hiring of eight new workplace safety and health inspectors. She announced a new round of civil service hiring in early 2001, with a particular focus on employment equity. Late in her term, she announced that Winnipeg paramedics would be added to a list of essential services
Essential services
Essential services may refer to a class of occupations that have been legislated by a government to have special restrictions in regard to labour actions - Such as not being allowed to legally strike....
not allowed to strike.
Barrett also held a series of public hearings into Manitoba's pension legislation in 2003, in the first full review of the legislation since 1984.
Immigration
Shortly after her appointment to cabinet in 1999, Barrett successfully pressured the federal government
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
to more the double the number of immigrants Manitoba was able to recruit for skilled jobs. Manitoba's percentage of Canadian immigration increased in the years that followed, and the federal government again increased the number of targeted recruitment positions in 2001, 2002 and 2003. In 2001, the Doer government introduced a medical licensing program to bring foreign-trained doctors into Canadian practice. Barrett also worked with the federal government to ensure Canada's ratification of the International Labour Organization
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...
's convention 182 against child labour.
Multiculturalism
Barrett introduced legislation in 2000 to recognize Holocaust Memorial Day in Manitoba.
Retirement
The opposition Progressive Conservatives targeted Barrett as a vulnerable minister after the business community's harsh response to her labour reforms in 2000. She was also criticized for approving a plan that would have allowed Manitoba Public Insurance
Manitoba Public Insurance
Manitoba Public Insurance is a non-profit Crown corporation based in Manitoba that has provided basic public auto insurance since 1971....
to divert part of its annual surplus to infrastructural repairs at three Manitoba universities in late 2000. This plan provoked significant opposition, and was later reversed.
In late 2002, Barrett announced that she would not be a candidate in the next provincial election
Manitoba general election, 2003
The Manitoba general election held on June 3, 2003 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the New Democratic Party, which won 35 seats out of 57. The Progressive Conservative Party finished second with twenty seats...
. Her last major act in office was to sign a new agreement with federal Immigration Minister
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (Canada)
The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing the federal government department responsible for immigration, refugee and citizenship issues, Citizenship and Immigration Canada...
Denis Coderre
Denis Coderre
Denis Coderre, PC, MP is a Canadian politician from Quebec, Canada. Coderre is the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Montreal riding of Bourassa.-Background:...
in June 2003, to increase the total immigration to Manitoba to 10,000 persons per year.
Federal politics
Barrett supported Alexa McDonoughAlexa McDonough
Alexa Ann Shaw McDonough OC is a Canadian politician who became the first woman to lead a major, recognized political party in Canada, when she was elected the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party's leader in 1980...
's successful bid to lead the federal New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
in 1995. She later served on a committee that reviewed the federal New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
's outreach strategy in 2001, and supported Bill Blaikie
Bill Blaikie
William Alexander "Bill" Blaikie, PC is a Canadian politician. He has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba since April 2009, representing the Winnipeg division of Elmwood as a member of the New Democratic Party of Manitoba, and Minister of Conservation and Government House Leader...
's campaign to become leader of the federal NDP in 2002-03. Barrett ran federal Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Pat Martin
Pat Martin
Patrick "Pat" Martin is a Canadian politician. He has been a member of the Canadian House of Commons since 1997, representing the riding of Winnipeg Centre for the New Democratic Party.-Career:...
's re-election campaign in the 2006 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
.
Since 2003
In 2006, Manitoba Auditor General Jon SingletonJon Singleton
Jon Singleton is a public servant in Manitoba, Canada. He is best known for his high-profile tenure as Auditor General of Manitoba from 1996 to 2006....
released a report that was strongly critical of the management of the Manitoba Workers Compensation Board under its former chairman, Wally Fox-Decent. In the resulting controversy, it was noted that Barrett had received a written complaint about Fox-Decent from former WCB chief executive officer Pat Jacobsen in March 2001. Barrett chose to refer the matter back to the WCB board of directors, a decision that some critics later described as an abdication of ministerial responsibility. Barrett's successor Nancy Allan
Nancy Allan
Nancy Allan is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. She is currently a cabinet minister in the New Democratic Party government of Greg Selinger....
argued that she acted properly, as the WCB board held legal authority over the matter. For his part, Fox-Decent rejected Jacobsen's complaint as a "poison pen" letter from a disgruntled employee.