National Executive Meeting March 24-27, 2025

The National Executive is meeting this week in Quebec City, QC from March 24-27. Monday was a packed day of training on Local AGM’s, Rules of Order, Week of action against racism and for equal opportunities, and a visit with our members at National Battlefield Commission organized by Local 10209’s Charles-Olivier Jean. Thanks so much to our guides, Louis-Joseph and James!

Playing Louis-Joseph De Montcalm: Katia Thibault-Rochefort, Local 10206 human rights and health & safety representative. Playing James Wolfe: Amélie Geoffroy

Work continued Tuesday with the presentation of reports and healthy discussions about member onboarding and local finances. In the afternoon, the group was updated on details surrounding UNE’s packed year of conferences and regional seminars where ideas on training and workshops were front and centre. Finally, a discussion on collective bargaining was capped off with the good news that members at Best Theratronics, who had been on strike since May 2024 finally reached an agreement with their employer.

UNE National Executive Passes Motion to Boycott Amazon

During the Union of National Employees (UNE) National Executive (NE) meeting which took place last week, information was shared with respect to Amazon making plans to close all seven of its warehouses in Quebec.  The Amazon warehouse closures will result in 1,700 permanent staff layoffs.

It has been less than a year since Amazon’s distribution centre in Laval, QC was unionized. While the company claims the shutdowns are not related, we believe this is an obvious case of union busting.

As a result, the National Executive unanimously passed a motion to boycott Amazon. UNE will no longer be reimbursing any union related expenses for goods purchased at Amazon.

Standing together, we amplify our strength. We encourage all UNE members to support Amazon workers by boycotting their employer.

National Executive Meeting – November 25-28

Please note that the next National Executive meeting will be held November 25-28, 2024 at the Lord Elgin Hotel in Ottawa from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. everyday. The first day will start with a training session on social justice from the Joint Learning Program (PSAC). In the afternoon, members will hear from UNE’s Director of Member Representation & Labour Relations, Douglas Hill, on how to meet the union’s duty of fair representation.

In accordance with UNE Bylaw 2, Sec 7: “Locals may send observers to executive meetings, at the expense of the Local”.

Should your Local have any item to be placed on the agenda for this meeting, please contact your Regional Vice-President and provide them with the necessary information in order that they could be in a position to place this matter before the Executive. 

About the National Executive: The National Executive is responsible for the policies, programs and direction of the Union of National Employees. Between conventions, it makes important decisions and creates policies that help look after our union. The executive also carries out resolutions adopted by the members during the last convention. Its members meet at least three times per year to review the union’s activities and ensure that they reflect the will of the membership.

UNE Election for National Vice-President for Occupational Health and Safety: Results

Yann Boudreau, former UNE Regional Vice-President for the Quebec Region, has been elected as the new National Vice-President for Occupational Health and Safety (OHS).

Yann Boudreau’s main objectives for this mandate will be as follows:

  1. Work with the National Executive to advance UNE issues.
  2. Work with the UNE OHS Committee to organize an interesting and informative Health & Safety Conference for our members.
  3. Assist members in answering OHS questions.
  4. Create a community of exchange and communication between the OHS representatives of each of the Local sections.

Update: Union Leave Requests for PA, SV, TC and EB Members

Treasury Board did not update its leave system to include Union leave (Peoplesoft code 641) before January 1st. Treasury Board estimates it will have the necessary coding completed by February 15th.

Until the update to the leave system is completed, members will need to submit a paper request, including the union authorization letter, to their employer to claim Union leave. Code 641 should also be noted on any paper form submitted. The Employer will continue to invoice your Union for your salary expenses and your pay and benefits will continue uninterrupted.

All Union leave claimed during this time period will be entered into the leave system at a later date when the Employer completes its implementation of this new collective agreement provision.

Source: www.psacunion.ca

Notice of National Executive Meeting

This is to advise that the National Executive of this Component will be meeting from Tuesday, April 19 to Thursday April 21, 2016 in the Union of National Employees Boardroom. The first session will commence at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, April 19.

Should your Local have any item to be placed on the agenda for this meeting, please contact your Regional Vice-President and provide him/her with the necessary information in order that he/she will be in a position to place this matter before the Executive.

 

Meeting of the National Executive

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The National Executive of the Union of National Employees will be meeting from Tuesday, January 26 to Thursday, January 28, 2016 in Ottawa.

Should your Local have any item to be placed on the agenda for this meeting, please contact your Regional Vice-President and provide him or her with the necessary information in order that he or she will be in a position to place this matter before the Executive.

Meeting of the National Executive

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The National Executive will meet from January 20 to 22, 2015. The meeting will be held in the UNE boardroom, in Ottawa.

If your Local wishes to place an item on the agenda, please contact your Regional Vice-President and provide him or her with clear and concise information. He or she will gladly bring your item before the executive.

First meeting of the National Executive: Oct 6-10

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The first meeting of the National Executive, this term, will be a bit different than usual. Since many of our union’s leaders are new in their position, we’re taking advantage of the opportunity to do some training – to make sure everyone is on the same page.

If your Local wishes to place an item on the meeting’s agenda, please contact your Regional Vice-President and provide him or her with clear and concise information about the item.

Who must attend?

All of the following must attend: national officers, regional vice-presidents, assistant regional vice-presidents and members of the human rights committee. If you cannot attend, please advise Ateau Zola as soon as possible.

When and where is the meeting?

The meeting will be held from October 6 to 10. In addition, members of the human rights committee will attend a full-day meeting on October 5. Meetings start at 9.am. and conclude at 5 p.m.

Since our boardroom can’t accommodate a meeting of this size, we’re holding this particular national executive meeting and training session in the Salon Royal of the Casino Lac Lemay.

Travel and accommodations

We will take care of reserving a room for everyone at the Hilton Lac Lemay, which is attached to the casino. Officers who reside in the National Capital Region will only have hotel rooms booked for them if they request it.

To make your travel arrangements, please contact WE Travel as soon as possible. If you wish, you can choose to stay overnight at the hotel and leave the following morning if you’re unable to arrive home before 10 p.m. on the day of travel.

When booking your travel, please ensure that you identify yourself as a UNE member. You can contact WE Travel in Ottawa at 1‑888‑676-7747 or WE Travel in Vancouver at 1‑800‑663‑4703 to book your flight.

Expenses

The Union of National Employees will pay for your hotel and flight directly. Members who are getting to the meeting using their own car will have their mileage reimbursed based on the shortest route using the UNE mileage rates. Whether you travel by car, train or bus, we will reimburse actual expenses, up to the most economical airfare that could have been obtained by WE Travel. This amount includes parking at the hotel and any additional per diem and loss of salary. In order to have their transportation costs reimbursed, members must keep all their receipts.

If you require a travel advance, please contact George St-Jean.

Questions?

Please direct all questions related to this meeting to Ateau Zola.

About the National Executive

The National Executive is responsible for the policies, programs and direction of the Union of National Employees. Between conventions, it makes important decisions and creates policies that help look after our union. The executive also carries out resolutions adopted by the members during the last convention. The National Executive meets three times per year to review the union’s activities and ensure that they reflect the will of the membership.

The end of Local 00381

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[Editor’s note: There was an error in the e-newsletter that pointed to this article. To be clear, it was Garry Larouche and not Gary Sparvier who attended the last meeting of Local 00381.]

During the last meeting of the executive, we unfortunately had to say goodbye to two of our Locals. In the Northwest Territories, Local X0305 saw its functions transferred to the territorial government; in Toronto, all the members of Local 00381 were laid off.

Sandy Bello, an assistant regional vice-president in Ontario, was there for Local 00381’s final meeting – a rather solemn occasion.

“The entire facility – offices and warehouse, was stripped of furnishings, records and shelving,” explained Bello. “There was a ‘for sale’ sign on the lawn, outside the front door.”

Remarking on the photographs they shot that day, Bello added, “If you think the walls are bare – they were!”

The Local was made up of Library and Archives Canada employees who were responsible for storing government records. Since the department removed that function from its mandate, four regional records centres were nixed.

“The decision was made to shut down the centres that don’t have archival offices attached to them,” explained Andy Yung, an assistant regional vice-president in British Columbia. “Library and Archives doesn’t consider records with no archival value worth keeping.”

In the past, all government publications and documents were stored by Library and Archives Canada. The government’s policy will likely lead to a decrease in transparency, since there’s a risk that important documents that shaped Canadian history will be lost forever.

Since each department will be responsible for housing their own dormant records,   researchers will undoubtedly see their work become more difficult. The Canadian public is already grappling with less access to our heritage; and there are fewer services being provided by the department.

If you think these changes are being made in the name of saving taxpayers money, you’d be wrong. Most functions have been contracted out to a private company; we’re paying more for less access.

It’s these changes that led to about 15 members in Toronto having to find work elsewhere in the federal government or retire. Among these members was Jerome Varney, who had been president of his Local for over 25 years.

During the meeting, Varney was presented with a certificate of appreciation and a UNE hoodie. Joyce Hendy, a UNE life member and a recipient of our human rights award, and Garry Larouche, regional vice-president, were also in attendance.

Local 00381 was officially dissolved during our recent national executive meeting. The motion was put forward by Regional Vice-President Garry Larouche, who provided some background about the members who were affected.

“The members of that Local did their job well and they were very proud of the work they did,” said Larouche.

Remarking on the final meeting, the regional vice-president characterised it as being “a very sad day – an emotional day.”

Photos of the last meeting of Local 00381 are on our Flickr page.