Toronto Community and Seniors Housing workers make a difference every day. We support over 164,000 low and moderate-income Torontonians in 58,500 households across the city. This includes assisting seniors, refugees, newcomers, and people with special needs to maintain quality homes in vibrant communities where people are proud to live and work.
Many of our members are on-call and serve as the first point of contact for tenant-related issues from maintenance to overdoses to evictions to pest control.
Far too often, they are being put in harm’s way. In fact, more than 66% have experienced violence, threats, or felt unsafe on the job in the past year.
They are often working alone, with no panic buttons, broken security cameras, and a Community Safety Unit that doesn’t provide 24/7 support.
No one should fear for their safety at work. Workers at Toronto Community Housing Corporation and Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation deserve better.
Toronto Community Housing (TCHC) and Toronto Seniors Housing (TSHC) serve and maintain 1,250 properties spanning 106 of Toronto’s 158 neighbourhoods.
As of Q1 2025, the total active waiting list for community housing in Toronto reached more than 104,000 applications. This list includes nearly 39,000 senior-specific applications.
Based on recent data, average wait times for seniors are 9 years, while tenants requesting a studio to 3-bedroom unit can expect to wait 11-15 years.
A recent tenant survey determined an increase in satisfaction in nearly every key service area (2% on average), in every customer service area (+5% on average) and with TCHC overall (+23%).
But CUPE Local 79 members are being stretched to their breaking point. More than 72% of staff have had to take on extra responsibilities just to keep up, covering for vacant positions as teams shrink.
Despite growing workloads, recruitment has stalled. Lost team members are not being replaced, leaving essential services at risk.
Ron
Seniors Services Coordinator
Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation
I don’t know why we’re waiting a lot of time to backfill people. It can impact the overall operations. It can impact our morale and most importantly, it will impact the people who we serve.
Helping seniors age in place is worth it. But workers like Ron are burning out as they struggle to foster safety, health and social wellbeing for over 700 residents in seniors housing. With 39,000 seniors on the waitlist, their work has never mattered more.
Members serving Toronto’s vulnerable communities are doing more than ever—but their pay isn’t keeping up.
Wages are falling behind the rising cost of living, leaving dedicated workers struggling to make ends meet.
Nirav is one of just two workers on call 24/7 for heat, hydro and water for 1,250 public housing buildings across Toronto.
Critical infrastructure depends on them—they deserve fair compensation that reflects both their workload and the value of their contributions.
