'When you gotta go, you gotta go:' Eastern Ontario truck drivers welcome proposed legislation allowing delivery workers to access bathrooms
A proposed new Ontario law may soon bring relief to those working behind the wheel.
The Ontario government will introduce legislation that would allow delivery workers access to bathrooms at businesses where they are delivering or picking up items.
Roland LaFlamme has been driving a truck for 50 years; but, with businesses restricting access during the pandemic, drivers like him don’t always have somewhere to, 'go.'
"Especially on that highway, here, on (Highway) 17," LaFlamme says. "After Pembroke, there’s no other place we can stop for a washroom."
The legislation, if passed, will apply to couriers, truck drivers, and food delivery workers access to washrooms.
"These workers have been there for all of us during the pandemic; we ought to be there for them; it’s time we give these drivers a break," said Minister of Labour, Monte McNaughton at a press conference Wednesday.
"This is something most people in Ontario take for granted but access to washrooms is a matter of common decency currently being denied to hundreds of thousands of workers in this province," McNaughton adds in a statement.
"When you gotta go number two, you think you can hold it?" says truck driver Howard Boudreau, while stopping at the Antrim Truck Stop in Arnprior, Ont. "When you gotta go, you gotta go!"
Boudreau says the pandemic has made life on the road tougher, and welcomes the proposed change.
"It gets frustrating sometimes, it does. I find it insulting at times when clients don’t let you use their washroom."
Steven Artuso just started driving for Uber Eats.
"Well, actually - yesterday during my first day, it was already a concern,” he says, while picking up an order outside of a west Ottawa McDonalds. "So, I’m sure for people doing it for over a year - yeah, that’s definitely a big concern for them. So yeah, I think it should be allowed."
Officials say the proposed legislation will only apply to businesses where workers are picking up or delivering items, and is not applicable to private residences.
The measures came after consultations through the government’s Ontario Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee, in which officials say they learned that delivery workers, including those who work for online platforms such as Uber Eats, are often denied use of washrooms at businesses.
The Ontario Trucking Association said in a statement that they are "thankful" for the proposed legislation.
Officials say that on average 203,700 people in Ontario were working as transport, bus, taxi and delivery drivers in 2020. During that same year, on average 30,800 people in the province worked as mail, couriers, messengers and door-to-door distributors.
With files from CTV News Toronto Multi-Platform Writer Katherine DeClerq
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Feature Report Fixed or variable? Advice from more than 50 brokers for Canadians whose mortgages are up for renewal
Over the next year-and-a-half, 44 per cent of all mortgages will be up for renewal in Canada. To help guide consumers through these uncertain financial times, CTV News reached out to more than 50 mortgage brokers across Canada with a list of questions. Their answers provide professional guidance for individuals and families searching for clarity and sound advice.
Airline loses Ontario woman's suitcase, doesn't offer compensation for 3 months
An Ontario woman who took a trip to Mexico in February said the airline lost her luggage on the flight home and didn’t compensate her for three months.
Bread, milk, apples: Federal NDP wants price cap for grocery store staples
The federal New Democrats want a price cap on grocery store staples if the Liberal government can't convince grocers to bring down the prices themselves.
Mourners can now speak to an AI version of the dead. But will that help with grief?
A 61-year-old startup entrepreneur teamed up with his friend in the U.S., Robert LoCascio, CEO of the AI-powered legacy platform Eternos. Within two months, they built "a comprehensive, interactive AI version" of Michael Bommer -- the company's first client.
Her gut was producing alcohol. Doctors didn't believe her
For two years doctors told her she was an alcoholic. Then they realized her gut was making alcohol from carbohydrates, a rare condition called auto-brewery syndrome.
North Korea's trash balloons deepen tensions with the South. Here's what's happening between rivals
Animosities between North and South Korea are rising sharply again over an unusual cause: The North's rubbish-carrying balloons.
Takeaways from Fauci's testimony at contentious U.S. House hearing on COVID-19 pandemic
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the former director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, testified on Monday at a House subcommittee hearing about the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the origins of the virus.
National Bank of Canada seizes Ont. woman's car by mistake
A university student woke up one morning to find her car had been towed away without warning. She finally got answers - just not the ones she expected.
India election: Modi's coalition leads in early count but opposition is stiffer than expected
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's coalition led in a majority of seats Tuesday in India's general election, according to early figures, but faced a stronger challenge from the opposition than expected after it pushed back against the leader's mixed economic record and polarizing politics.