As noted in the Ontario Federation of Labour’s (OFL) 2006 document Expose and Oppose P3s A Discussion Guide on Public-Private Partnerships (P3s), there are many reasons to oppose P3s.

Lost Jobs
There is compelling evidence that P3 arrangements result in job loss, lower pay and benefits, reduced pension protection, poor working conditions, fewer opportunities for training, and more overtime, and greater health and safety risks.

Reduced Access to and Quality of Public Services/Public Health and Safety Risks
Cost cutting and downsizing leads to lower quality of services to our communities. The design and construction are done to meet the needs of the private entities and not necessarily the needs of the community. Taking into account the higher costs of P3s and the profit orientation of the private sector, quality is almost always sacrificed. 

In some cases, the results are tragic, as in the Walkerton case or Mad Cow Disease in the UK, where health and safety standards were sacrificed.

De-unionization
P3s circumvent union contracts and lead to a two-tier workforce where new hires are paid less and receive fewer benefits.  Workers can lose their unions when contracts are re-negotiated or when services are transferred from the public to the private sector and the workers and their unions have no successor rights.

Corporatization and Privatization
P3s expand the role of for-profit corporations, not only in delivery of services but also in public policy making. 

The role of government in shaping the economy for the greater good is reduced and elected politicians are held captive by corporations.