July 28, 2010
Volume 40, No. 27
Government Must Extend Temporary EI Measures
The federal government must act immediately to extend budget measures and pilot projects providing vitally important Employment Insurance supports to laid off workers, the CAW is urging Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
"All the key Employment Insurance stimulus measures and projects are starting to fall off the table, beginning September 11," CAW President Ken Lewenza and Fish, Food and Allied Workers President Earle McCurdy told Harper in a July 13 letter.
"This will come as a terrible shock to most Canadians. Many of those currently on regular EI would have already exhausted their benefits if not for those measures," Lewenza and McCurdy state.
In its latest employment outlook, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development noted that the number of long-term unemployed almost doubled as a percentage of Canada's labour force in the last two years and recommended that EI temporary extensions "should be maintained until the pool of long-term unemployed begins to drop significantly."
Talk of early exit strategies for government stimulus at the G20 meetings and elsewhere is deeply disturbing, Lewenza and McCurdy state.
"Indeed, the recovery is still vulnerable. There's a danger of a double dip recession and both unemployment and underemployment will be with us for some time. Our members know this only too well; some are in their second layoff in as many years."
A battle is also heating up in the US over UI extensions. There the federal government has already extended benefits for up to 99 weeks, adding 73 weeks of extra benefits on top of the 26 weeks provided by most states. Canada's EI extensions are modest in comparison.
CAW and FFAW called for eight temporary EI measures to be extended or made permanent, including:
. an extra five weeks benefits for all claimants and an extension of up to 20 weeks for long service workers;
. two pilot projects that base benefit calculations on 14 best weeks of earnings and allow earnings of up to 40% of benefits while on EI;
. EI training benefits for claimants in approved re-training programs.
To read the complete copy of the letter to Harper go to: http://www.caw.ca/en/9128.htm
CAW Reaches Deal With St. Marys Cement
The CAW has reached a tentative agreement with St. Marys Cement after a five month long strike at the Bowmanville facility over pensions and a number of other concessions.
The tentative agreement is subject to ratification by the 87 CAW Local 222 members and voting will take place on Thursday, July 29. Details of the agreement will be released following ratification.
St. Marys Cement is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Brazilian company Votorantim Cimentos.
CAW Members Approve VIA Deal
CAW members at VIA Rail have voted 88 per cent in favour of a new collective agreement, in a series of ratification meetings held across the country over the past weeks.
"This agreement is a major victory for VIA workers, especially in light of the many concessions initially demanded by the company," said CAW President Ken Lewenza. He congratulated the CAW master bargaining committee for their efforts during the difficult round of negotiations.
"Now we must turn our attention to pushing the federal government to properly support this important service which links our country from east to west," said Lewenza. "For many years, governments of the day have undervalued and underfunded VIA Rail, putting an ever-increasing strain on operations."
The three year agreement includes wage increases in each year; improvements to the benefit plan, including short-term and long-term disability, maternity leave; a new apprenticeship program for maintenance and for the first time, establishes health care spending accounts for retirees.
"I'm pleased that we were able to arrive at this agreement which enjoyed such high support from VIA workers," said CAW National Council 4000 Secretary-Treasurer Heather Grant, representing both the customer service and on-board service workers.
"Improvements to the collective agreement were important to our members, but equally important was finalizing the apprenticeship program for skilled trades which will be put into place in locations across the country," said CAW Local 100 President John Burns, whose local union represents maintenance workers.
The CAW is VIA Rail's largest union, representing 2,200 workers. The union reached the agreement with VIA on June 26.
Dragon Boats for the Cure
| More than 100 CAW Local 444 members came out to participate in and support the recent "Dragon Boats For A Cure" races, held on July 10 and 11, 2010 at Tecumseh, Ontario's Waterfront Park. The Dragon Boats for a Cure festival raises money for breast cancer research. Women breast cancer survivors and supporters from all over North America came to participate. CAW Local 444 raised $23,000. Photo: Gord Gray, CAW Local 444. |
Bargaining Opens at B.C. Lower Mainland Ports
The Vancouver Container Truckers Association-CAW Local 2006 officially opened bargaining July 22 with a group of separate companies engaged in moving containers to and from the various lower mainland ports.
VCTA-CAW Local 2006 represents the largest group of container truck drivers at lower mainland ports in British Columbia. The membership is seeking a benchmark agreement for container truck drivers which will promote port stability and put an end to constant under-cutting of owner-operator rates.
"We can't have stability at the ports with an increasing number of unscrupulous container truck companies competing in a race to the bottom," said VCTA-CAW Local 2006 President Paul Johal.
Port Metro Vancouver (PMV) terminals saw a massive withdrawal of service by 1200 owner-operators in 2005 to protest working conditions and a race to the bottom on rates. The dispute disrupted port operations and cost the provincial and national economies hundreds of millions of dollars.
As a result, the federal government amended the Port Authorities Operations Regulations to set up a licensing system with benchmark and minimum rates for applicable owner-operators. The B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure also set up a program to investigate and make recommendations to PMV to enforce the correct rates. PMV can sanction, suspend, or cancel the licenses of offenders.
"It seems the Ports aren't that interested in rate enforcement as they won't name companies with suspended or cancelled licenses," said CAW National Representative Gavin McGarrigle.
"The Ports need to be ordered to do a better and more transparent job of rate enforcement. The Port regulations need to be changed to provide for true stability instead of the fake appearance of stability that we are left with today," said McGarrigle.
Further bargaining is scheduled for August 4 and 5.
Attack on Public Sector Workers' Collective Bargaining Unfair
The CAW criticized the Ontario government's attempt to attack the collective bargaining rights of public sector workers and the important services these workers provide across the province following a consultation with Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan and other public sector unions on July 20.
"To suggest that the provincial deficit should be borne by public sector workers is tremendously short-sighted and unfair," said CAW President Ken Lewenza. "Ontario can only get out of a deficit position by growing the economy, not by making it even more precarious. This will in no way protect services as the province is claiming."
Lewenza said that the union recognizes the difficulty the province is facing due to the loss of jobs and the impact of the financial crisis but insists that the cost cannot be borne almost wholly by workers.
Under its austerity program, intended to cut into what is projected to be a $21 billion deficit, the provincial government is zeroing in on workers in the education, civil service and health care sectors, a move Lewenza said is unwarranted and will further stall what is already a fragile economic recovery.
The union is also condemning the government's approach to hospital funding, cut back this year with many facilities facing severe funding shortfalls and even closures in some communities.
Lewenza said the Public Sector Compensation Restraint to Protect Public Services Act, is having far-reaching implications even into the for-profit long term care sector, which employs thousands of CAW members. "For-profit providers such as Extendicare and Revera are now demanding wage restraints and threatening lay-offs despite the fact that the province recently announced $157 million in new funding for the long term care homes sector."
"This is already a sector characterized by low wages, long working hours and staffing shortages. Too many people working in this sector, predominantly women, have to string together two part time jobs in order to provide for themselves and their families. Our message to the province and to these private sector employers is that we will not tolerate this wage freeze."
The consultation was the first of a number of others to follow. Lewenza said the union plans to continue meeting with the government to arrive at a solution which precludes placing the burden directly on public sector workers and the important public services these workers provide.
Winnipeg Casino Workers to Vote on CAW Representation
One thousand workers at the Club Regent and McPhillips Street Station casinos in Winnipeg participated in a union displacement vote that could see them represented by the CAW - Canada's largest gaming workers union. The vote took place over three days, from July 22 to 24.
Some workers at the two casinos have expressed frustration with their current union over inadequate representation and perceived lack of transparency in decision-making, which sparked their campaign to be represented by the CAW.
"Many of the workers we have spoken to fully understand the benefits of being a union member, they just want the type of open, democratic and progressive representation that other workers enjoy with the CAW," said John Aman, the union's national organizing director.
In response to the workers' desire to be represented by the CAW, the incumbent union launched a public campaign intending to discredit the CAW and discourage workers from voting for the CAW.
"It's unfortunate that this union has chosen to spend an extraordinary amount of time, money and energy to publicly attack our union, especially when there are so many outstanding workplace issues affecting their members' lives," Aman said.
Vote results are expected to be announced by the Manitoba Labour Board in the coming weeks.
CAW is Canada's largest union in the gaming sector, representing over 7,000 workers at Caesars Windsor Casino, Brantford Casino, Slots at Sudbury Downs, Great Blue Heron Casino, Edgewater Casino and the Woodbine Racetrack as well as other locations.
$46 Million Poultry Plant Good News for N.S. Members
Plans for a $46 million chicken and turkey processing plant in Nova Scotia is a positive step towards getting CAW members back to work in the Annapolis Valley.
CAW Local 2216 members who worked at ACA Co-operative poultry processing facility in Nova Scotia were left reeling by a decision to downsize the plant resulting in 185 layoffs.
Plans were announced July 13 to build a new plant in the Kentville Industrial Park. The facility will be jointly owned by Maple Lodge Farms and a group of local farmers, processing chickens and turkeys raised in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.
CAW Local 2216 President Dean Tupper said the announcement of the new state-of-the- art facility is a positive step toward getting many CAW members back to work.
"After some tough times and enormous uncertainty for our members this plant promises to bring a more stable work environment, while also creating more jobs in the local community," said Tupper. "Our members have made tremendous sacrifices to keep this industry alive in Nova Scotia," Tupper said.
The ACA Co-operative facility's future has been in jeopardy for some time as new poultry processing technology has come to market. In the latest round of contract negotiations with ACA, CAW Local 2216 members ratified a new cost-saving agreement that was needed to secure investment in the new plant.
"I want to thank the membership for their strong support of the bargaining committee during this very tough round of negotiations," said CAW national representative Chad Johnston.
"The decisions they had to make while they were in the process of losing their jobs weren't easy for them or their families. It was our sincere hope that those tough decisions would help them secure a better future and this announcement is a step in the right direction," he said.
Looking Back to Move Forward: CAW Women's Art Project
The CAW Women's Program has undertaken an innovative community arts project entitled Looking Back to Move Forward that will celebrate CAW women and their history.
The project aims to compile a patchwork of CAW women's stories of struggle, activism and personal experiences over the past 25 years into a creative art collage that will be on display at CAW Council in Toronto this December.
The union has received funding from the Ontario Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Council for this initiative and has partnered with experienced community artist Florencia Berinstein, who will coordinate and animate the project.
The project requires the help of all CAW sisters. Women from all sectors of the union and all geographic regions are encouraged to participate.
Please visit http://www.caw.ca/en/9002.htm to download the project questionnaire. All questionnaires must be filled out and be returned through any of the following options:
Mail: Florencia Berinstein, Project Artist,
602 Delaware Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario M6H 2V2
Email: fberinstein@gmail.com
Fax: 416-599-8661
If you have questions about this arts project, please contact Julie White, CAW Director of Women's Programs, at: julie.white@caw.ca
CAW 25th Anniversary Song Contest
The CAW is turning 25 this year and what better way to celebrate our two and a half decades than by a song?
Talented CAW members from across the country have submitted their original work.
Now it's up to you to decide what song will be chosen to commemorate the union's first 25 years.
The three finalists are:
"The Line" by Adrian Burnett (CAW Local 3000)
"It's only getting better" by Art Farquharson (CAW Local 114)
"Stand up for what you believe" by Glen MacNeil (CAW Local 2027)
Songs can be heard online by visiting: http://www.caw.ca/en/9169.htm
To cast your vote, please visit the CAW homepage: www.caw.ca/en
Voting closes on August 4. The winning song will be performed at the CAW Joint Council in Montreal, Quebec - August 27-29.
CAW Welcomes New Members
# Manitouwadge General Hospital, Manitouwadge, Ontario - 8 new members in CAW Local 229.
# Hampton Court Retirement Lodge, Southampton, Ontario - 18 new members in CAW Local 2458;
# OLG Mohawk Slots (Security) Campbellville, Ontario - 40 new members in CAW Local 252;
# Cascade Carriers LP, Multiple locations in Alberta - 54 new members in CAW Local 4050;
# Orchard Court, Shannex Incorporated, Kentville, Nova Scotia - 60 new members in CAW Local 2216;
