CUPE Manitoba urges government to swiftly pass Bill 13
Posted August 11, 2026 6:14 pm.
Last Updated August 11, 2026 6:46 pm.
CUPE Manitoba is urging the government to swiftly pass Bill 13, a proposal aimed at giving more protections to renters.
On Tuesday, the union called out the PC Party, saying that they need to stop playing games when it comes to renters in the province.
“This is for workers and families. And if we’re going to deliver on Manitoba’s public services, we need workers, families and communities to be able to live, to be able to budget properly and to not be rent evicted from gauging through rental increases,” said Gina McKay, the president of CUPE Manitoba.
The Residential Tenancies Amendment Act is intended to provide relief to renters while adding restrictions to landlords. It proposes mandatory unit fillings, mandating giving tenants at least 24 hours’ notice prior to showing an occupied unit, public record clearances, and increasing maximum penalties for violating the Residential Tenancies Branch up to $10,000.
CUPE represents over 40,000 workers across Manitoba, striving to make lives better for its members.
Jane Bullied and her husband live and rent in Osborne Village; they once paid $1,047 for rent, but that was 15 years ago; now, they pay $1,785.
“Our rent has gone up significantly in the last few years,” said Bullied.
Bill 13 proposes raising the monthly rent-control exemption limit from $1,670 to $2,000.
“That would make a huge difference for us. I mean at 2,000, we couldn’t afford to stay where we are. And we’ve been here 15 years, renting for 15 years. And we love the neighbourhood. We love everything about it except big jumps in rent,” said Bullied. “We come up with the money every year, but it’s getting a little more difficult all the time.”
McKay says, “We need Obby Khan, and we need the Conservatives in Manitoba to really understand the core value here, which is housing is a human right. We need to be able to expand the number of renters protected in Manitoba.”
PC Leader Obby Khan says that he agrees with McKay that housing is a basic human right, but says that this bill does nothing to address affordability.
“There’s lots of concerns over this bill. Instead of rushing this, we’d say let’s have this at committee. Let’s have Manitobans come forward and have their say on this very important issue instead of just forcing it through. I don’t think that’s playing games; I think that’s actually doing the democratic right of Manitobans,” said Khan.
Fall legislative session resumes on September 29.
