Posted on

National Acadian Day

Happy August 15! It’s a great day for all Acadians around the world. Acadia is the only country considered without borders. The French who first settled in Acadia in order to have a better life than the one in France. Acadia would belong sometimes to France, sometimes to England between 1604 and 1713; the period 1713-1755 marks a difficult period for the Acadian people. The British wanted the Acadians to swear allegiance to the King of England. The Acadians refused to do so, only wanting to live in peace, both on French territory and in English.

In June 1755, when the British took possession of the French colonies in North America, the British governor of Nova Scotia decreed the Deportation of the Acadians or Déportation des Acadiens, part of the Great Upheaval or Grand Dérangement. This period spanned between 1755 and 17663. The goal was to disperse the Acadians in the various territories under British rule. The Acadians were stripped of their possessions and deported around the world. They were chased away and imprisoned until 1763. After that date, the Acadian people were allowed to return to what would later become the Atlantic provinces. For more than a hundred years, speaking French in public was prohibited by law, and there was no education in French. The Acadian flag appeared in 1881, the French flag with the yellow star; the National Acadian Day was named shortly after, as well as our national anthem, Ave Maris Stella.

Our Acadian identity is our pride. Sometimes people ask me if I still feel some animosity towards the British Crown in its attempt to get rid of the Acadian people, and I say no to them. Even today, intolerance towards other people and cultures exists, and some people still try to reject the poor. I refuse to live in hatred. The Deportation of the Acadians made us what we are. We have a strong and resilient culture, a proud culture of our identity, and a culture that belongs to a country without borders. This country speaks an old French language of Poitou and Normandy, a French language that is no longer found in the Larousse or Petit Robert dictionaries, a French language which has remained alive, here in Acadia, from one generation to another.

Mike LeBlanc, Atlantic Regional Vice-President

 

Posted on

Conférence sur la santé et la sécurité en milieu de travail – 2018

Joignez-vous à nous pour la Conférence sur la santé et la sécurité en milieu de travail du SEN qui aura lieu du 25 au 28 octobre 2018 à l’Hôtel Hilton du Lac Leamy, à Gatineau. Participez aux discussions sur cette thématique pour apprendre comment rendre votre milieu de travail plus sécuritaire et plus sain pour vous et vos pairs!

Pour plus d’information:

La date limite d’inscription est le vendredi 10 août 2018.

 

 

Posted on

Bargaining Demands Input Call for Parks Canada Agency

The next round of negotiations with the Employer to renew your collective agreement will be happening soon. The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) has the primary responsibility for collective bargaining, but before negotiations begin, the UNE is responsible for soliciting bargaining demands from its members.

This is your chance to have your say and address specific issues that require improvement in your collective agreement.

Key dates to keep in mind:

 

Posted on

Update on SSO Negotiations

The bargaining team met in Ottawa from June 12 to 14, 2018, to try to reach a collective agreement for both office and field units.

An important improvement for our members in both units was reached after weeks of discussion with the employer: the conversion of term positions to indeterminate ones after four years of employment at SSO. The new policy will come into effect as of October 1, 2018 and cannot be altered unless both parties agree to modify it.

The PSAC bargaining team has been fighting hard to negotiate a fair collective agreement and put forward proposals on wage-related issues. The employer accepted the same wage increase that the core public sector gets but refused any other offer.

Since there are still important wages issues both parties could not agree, the next step will be to file for arbitration. Stay tuned.

Our bargaining team:

Shalane Spencer

Mary Ann Walker

Linda Woods

Shelly Daudlin

Alice Vallee

Claude-Andre Leduc

Anna Goldfeld

 

Posted on

Legislative Update: Bill C-262, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act

Daniel Toutant, MP Romeo Saganash and Ruby Langan

 

Bill C-262, An Act to ensure that the laws of Canada are in harmony with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, is a fundamental piece of legislation. Bill C-262 ensures that the laws of Canada respect the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This bill addresses an essential issue, Indigenous human rights. The sponsor of the bill, MP Romeo Saganash, worked with the United Nations for 23 years, negotiating the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples:

“Bill C-262 […] also allow[s] us to begin to redress the past wrongs, the past injustices that were inflicted on indigenous people. This is the main objective of Bill C-262, to recognize that on one hand they are human rights but on the other hand that we begin to redress the past injustices that were inflicted on the first peoples of this country.”

“The long journey of reconciliation involves recognizing fundamental Indigenous human rights and Bill C-262 shows us why we need to implement these international standards” explains National Equity Representative for Aboriginal Peoples Ruby Langan.

Ruby has been promoting this bill across the country and coordinated three rallies in late 2017, two of which were in Ottawa as well as one in Vancouver. She had the opportunity to attend the debate in the House of Commons on December 5, 2017 and listened to Romeo Saganash’s speech on this important issue. “Being invited by the Office of MP Romeo Saganash to attend the debate on this bill was an honour and a moment of pride for all the work aboriginal activists and allies put into the awareness of this fundamental issue”.

“Bill C-262 is about human rights. Bill C-262 is about justice. Bill C-262 is about reconciliation”, explains MP Saganash. The government supports the bill. Committed to reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, the Prime Minister established a working group of Ministers to study laws regarding Indigenous peoples. The bill has gone through three readings in the House of Commons and is scheduled for the Senate. Bill C-262 is a long-term commitment to improve Canada’s Indigenous human rights legislation.

Ruby has demonstrated her tireless commitment to not just indigenous peoples, but her hope to educate union leadership, and the general public as well. Her accomplishments are to be well recognized by all of us at UNE.

 

Posted on

National Indigenous Peoples Day

This should be a national holiday. The whole country should use June 21 to celebrate and honour the original peoples of this land. There is much to learn, whether historical or current events, and much to do. For many Canadians, the history of Indigenous peoples was not taught in school. I offer some suggestions.

Learn the history

  • Indigenous peoples as allies, treaty making
  • Indigenous peoples as wards of the state, Indian Act, apartheid, genocide, residential school barbarity, Metis scrip, Inuit relocation

Monitor current events

  • Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) Inquiry
  • United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)
  • Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC)
  • Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP)
  • 60’s Scoop
  • Pipelines and resources, duty to consult
  • Indigenous chapter in North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

Activate

There is so much we need to accomplish. Learn. Feel. Heal. Eat bannock. Attend a pow wow. Read a book by an Indigenous author. Change laws and attitudes. Open eyes. Human rights equality in Canada depends on what we are willing to do.

All my relations,

Ruby Langan

UNE National Equity Representative for Aboriginal Peoples