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May is Asian Heritage Month

The month of May, in Canada, celebrates the achievements and heritage of Asian Canadians. In many ways, Asian Canadians faced an uphill battle from the moment they arrived in a younger Canada. So fervent was racism directed at immigrants from China, that even the labour movement fell prey to the vitriol.

Confederation was built on the back of railroads. It’s an idea first floated by Thomas Keefer, an engineer, author and businessman who called trains “the iron civilizer”.

“The young men and maidens, the old men and the matrons, daily collect around the cars: they wonder where so many well-dressed and rich-looking people come from and are going to, etc. – what queer machines those are which they see passing backwards and forwards.”1

The railroad and those “queer machines” created a stronger economy. Suddenly, there were stronger ties between very different people from very different geographical areas who found themselves a part of a greater “Canadian” society.

But all that came at a cost. More than 600 Chinese labourers lost their lives while working on the B.C. stretch of the Canadian Pacific Railway.2 It’s a sad part of our history that many Canadians only learned about thanks to CBC’s heritage project.

But the untold story was the fervent prejudice that Chinese immigrants had to deal with, at the hands of the public, the government and even one major labour union.

By 1911, close to ten percent of British Columbians were Chinese.3 The Chinese population was faced with countless stereotypes; the men were associated with opium, gambling and uncleanliness – women were regarded as prostitutes. Even if whites lived side by side with Asian immigrants, they really didn’t have a deep knowledge of their new neighbours; “they screened out many of the immigrants’ characteristics and magnified a few others,” contends Historian Peter Ward, at the University of British Columbia.4

But, overall, the Chinese were unpopular because they were seen as unfair competition for low-paying jobs.

Enter the Knights of Labor; a progressive labour reform organization that believed in organizing all workers, regardless of “skill, sex or race”.5 When an economic depression hit in the mid 1880s, the Knights began to argue against Chinese immigration. During an 1885 Royal Commission, the Knights of Labor officially objected to Chinese labour, arguing that they were poised to become “dangerous competitors in the labour market.”6

The government reacted by attempting to restrict immigration by imposing a head tax on all Chinese immigrants. It started out, in 1885, at $50, but quickly rose to $500 by 1903.7

“The head tax succeeded in reducing overall Chinese immigration, particularly female immigrants, since many married men could not afford to bring their wives, and few single men could pay the tax for single women who might become their wives.”8

While the Japanese escaped the head tax (because Japan was one of Britain’s military allies), Canada nonetheless restricted the number of Japanese immigrants to 400 a year.9

There was a clear difference between Chinese and Japanese immigrants at the time; the Chinese were resented by unskilled labourers because they were in direct competition for low-paying jobs. On the other hand, the Japanese, who were typically educated and rich, were resented by the elites, with whom they competed.

In 1923, the government enacted the Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned most Chinese immigrants. And while Canada’s postwar immigration policy finally did away with the Act, severe restrictions on Asian immigration continued to exist.10

In 2006, the Government of Canada officially apologized for the Chinese Head Tax. As part of the apology, surviving head-tax payers or their surviving spouses were to receive a $20,000 payment.11

The Head Tax Families Society of Canada contends that Stephen Harper’s government has excluded thousands of head tax families seeking reparations, since only one percent of head tax families qualify for the payment.12

They continue to seek a fair settlement.

[1] Keefer, Thomas, C. (1853) Philosophy of Railroads. Montreal.

[2] Chan, Anthony B. Chinese, The Canadian Encyclopedia.

[3] Francis, R. D., Jones, R., & Smith, D. (2008). Destinies: Canadian history since confederation. (6 ed.). University of Calgary: Nelson Education Ltd.

[4] Ward, Peter. (2002) White Canada Forever: Popular Attitudes and Public Policy Towards Orientals. Quebec: McGill-Queen’s University Press.

[5] Kealy, G.S., Knights of Labour, Canadian Encyclopedia.

[6] Creese, Gillian (1988) Workers, Capital and the State in British Columbia: Selected Papers. Warburton, R. and Coburn, D. (ed.) British Columbia: University of British Columbia Press.

[7] Francis, R. D., Jones, R., & Smith, D. (2008). Destinies: Canadian history since confederation. (6 ed.). University of Calgary: Nelson Education Ltd.

[8] Idem

[9] Idem

[10] Idem

[11] Munrow, Susan. (2006) Canada Gives Formal Apology for Chinese Head Tax

[12] Head Tax Families Society of Canada

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The Twelve Days of Cuts

Today marks one year since the Harper government launched an all-out attack on public services. And yet, it seems like the general public isn’t fully aware of the true impact of these cuts. Some of these cuts are downright ridiculous – especially when you look at the government’s other priorities: pandas, shameless self-promotion, war of 1812 phone apps, etc….

So let’s put it out there. Let’s show how these cuts have impacted Canadians.

Over the next twelve days, we’ll be releasing an image each day on Facebook and Twitter. We’re counting on you to share these with your friends – and encourage them to do the same!

For those of you who aren’t on these social media platforms, you can still check back here each day to see what image we’re sharing!

Day 1 – If only Harper loved our national parks and historic sites as much as he lurrrrves PANDAS!

Day 2 – Fiscal conservative? The money spent on the war of 1812 could have supported over 800 local archives for the next 16 years.

Day 3 – Harper and Stats? LOL!

Day 4 – Harper and First Nations…err… Be right back!

Day 5 – Watch out for that wave, dude!

Day 6 – Arts only matter when they’re linked to a tax cut (or your approval rating!)

Day 7 – Uh oh! It’s a fire!

Day 8 – OMG! Like, Harper totally loves giving things a MAKEOVER!!!

Day 9 – You say Parks Canada, I say SPA CANADA!

Day 10 – I put the ‘reduction’ in poverty reduction!

Day 11 – I just LOVE ribbon-cuttings!

Day 12 – Let’s party like it’s 1984!

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High School Bursaries

Earlier this month, the Union of National Employees raised $10,000 to create a series of high school bursaries. Thanks to donations from members at the All Presidents’ Conference, Locals, the national executive and our union, ten lucky high school students will receive $1,000 to help them pursue higher education.

Part of the money was raised through a raffle held at the All Presidents Conference. The first two winners won some rather cool prizes directly from Moscow: Russian nesting dolls and a jersey signed by Russian hockey legend Vladislav Tretiak. The next four names out of the hat won the opportunity to work with their regional team to identify a high school in their region worthy of our bursary.

Allan Combres of Local 20214, whose name was third out of the hat, admits that even if his name had been picked first or second, he would still have jumped at the chance to be part of the high school bursary program… even if his son probably would have been blown away by the hockey jersey!

“I think it’s a good opportunity to get children exposed to the labour movement,” said Combres.

Combres admits that his own children don’t hear much about the labour movement at school.

“They learn that from their dad, here,” he added, proudly.

This bursary is the first of its kind at the Union of National Employees. Specifically, it’s the first bursary that reaches out to the broader public, as opposed to only targeting members and their families.

“It’s crucial to reach out and explain the work of unions to the general public, especially to those who aren’t unionized,” said Donald Parsons, who will be working with the Atlantic region to select a worthy high school.

Parsons says that kind of work is especially important nowadays, since unions are increasingly being portrayed in a negative light.

“Too many people think ‘I don’t have that benefit; why should you?’ when they should be thinking ‘you have that benefit, why don’t I?’” said Parsons.

High school students who hope to be awarded a bursary will have to submit an essay detailing how unions have helped build a middle class in Canada and how they were (and continue to be!) a progressive force, fighting for values that would eventually become regarded as national values.

“It’s important that young people understand and appreciate that the labour movement will be there for them as they begin their working careers,” said Parsons.

For more information on this bursary and others offered by the UNE, please click here.

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National Day of Mourning, April 28

About 900 people per year lose their lives on the job.1

It’s in memory of those men and women that the flag will fly at half-mast on Parliament Hill on April 28. The National Day of Mourning is both an occasion to remember those whose lives were tragically lost and a reminder that deaths in the workplace are largely preventable.

But only if there’s regulation to make it so!

It wasn’t so long ago that the PSAC warned that the Harper Government was putting public service employees’ lives at risk. The warning came at the heels of a report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, which revealed that cuts for federal inspections were leading to disabling injuries and fatalities.

According to Success is No Accident, by then CCPA Research Associate David Macdonald, the rate of disabling injuries in the federal sector had increased by 5 per cent between 2002 and 2007 while its counterparts in the provinces managed to cut these injuries by 25 per cent.2

In federally-regulated workplaces, health and safety inspections are conducted by HRSDC’s labour affairs officers (incidentally, these are UNE members!).

At the time, the 2010 report made it clear that there simply weren’t enough labour affairs officers to do the job.

“With only 128 [labour affairs officers] covering over a million Canadians, it is little wonder that there are concerns about insufficient resources to do the job,” wrote Macdonald.

That was two years before the cuts.

In the 2012 budget, the Conservative government eliminated HRSDC’s fire protection program. Labour Affairs Officers in charge of fire protection conduct inspections in passport offices, post offices and other government buildings. It’s thanks to their work that Canadians can feel safe in knowing that they’re not standing in a tinderbox when they have business to conduct in a government building.

These members also conduct inspections on First Nations reserves, since these fall under federal jurisdiction. Some of the buildings they inspect include schools, daycares and other offices offering family services.

By April 2014, the program will be no more; the responsibility will be delegated to departments. It’ll be up to each department to self-regulate and up to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada to ensure that fire doesn’t pose a risk on First Nations reserves.

Evidently, the Harper Government hasn’t heard of an analogy involving foxes and henhouses.

On this National Day of Mourning, we call on the government to honour the memories of those who lost their lives on the job. We urge it to reverse this trend that is putting our members at risk – that is playing a dangerous game with the lives of Canadians and First Nations people.

No one should ever have to die for a paycheque.

[1] Day of Mourning (2013) Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety.

[2] Success Is No Accident (2010) Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

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The Fog Finally Clears: a look at the CCPA report

Earlier this month, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released a report about how recent cuts have affected service delivery. The Conservative government contends that everyday Canadians won’t notice the impact of its spending cuts, but the report – and our experience – tells an entirely different story.

National President Doug Marshall said the union knew right away that these cuts would have a dramatic effect on public services. The 2012 budget cuts were just one more blow in a series of departmental budget that have been happening year after year.

“First of all, the Conservatives keep saying these are only back-office cuts”, said Marshall. “Well, when you cut administrative support to front-line service workers, it inevitably reduces their capacity to provide those important services to Canadians.”

“They not only have to do their work, but they have to do the work of others.”

But, clearly, this report clearly shows that most of the job cuts are indeed affecting programs – they’re directly affecting Canadians.

In his report, CCPA Senior Economist David MacDonald identified the top five large departments affected by proportional cuts. Among the five are three departments where workers are represented by the Union of National Employees: Statistics Canada, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada.

The Union of National Employees can point to many examples of programs that have been directly affected by these cuts.

“In the Atlantic, for example, there were two people at AANDC who inspected water quality on First Nations reserves,” said Marshall. “Now there’s only one.”

Also at AANDC, cuts to administrative support have put a lot of pressure on the workers that are left. There are funding service officers, people who liaise with elected First Nations Representatives, who are working without administrative support.

According to a June 2009 organizational risk assessment conducted by AANDC, Funding Service Officers see themselves as the front-line of the department. Among their responsibilities are maintaining relationships with First Nations communities, “who many see the [Funding Service Officer] as their representative in Ottawa.1

Over at HRSDC, where we represent labour affairs officers, one only has to look at the dismantling of the fire protection program to see how these cuts are not only affecting Canadians, but putting their lives in jeopardy.

“These are people who inspect federally-owned buildings across Canada as well as community buildings on First Nations reserves,” said Marshall. “We’re concerned that fire safety is being delegated to each department. We’re concerned because self-regulation simply doesn’t work – especially when it comes to health and safety.”

Finally, the effects at Statistics Canada are perhaps the most obvious. According to the report, Statistics Canada tops the list with a projected 35% decrease in full-time employees between 2012 and 2016.

“They’re quite simply conducting fewer surveys,” remarked Marshall. “Canadians are missing out on some very important data. We’re talking about data that can help governments at all levels better tailor their services to Canadians and data that can help the business community better understand their market.”

The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives believes that the total number of job cuts by March 2016 will be 28,700. The total number of public servants is expected to fall by 8%; almost double what the government had projected in its 2012 budget.

“This is information we’ve been asking the Harper government for,” said Marshall. “It’s ironic that when we finally got some clarity, it had to come from a non-profit organization.”

[1] Values and Ethics: An Organizational Risk Assessment (2009). Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.

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Parks Canada and Union Sign Collective Agreement

The collective agreement is now online. You can download it by clicking here (but be warned, it’s a doozy of a file! It’s 10 MB!)

Representatives from the Public Service Alliance of Canada and Parks Canada signed the official version of the collective agreement, earlier today.

“Now that it’s signed, members will feel a lot better,” said Loretta Moar, a member on the bargaining team.  “It’s a great thing for the members. I’m ecstatic about it.”

In an email sent to all Parks Canada employees, the agency’s CEO, Alan Latourelle, remarked on both parties’ efforts in reaching an agreement.

“The collaborative attitude and ongoing working relationship between PSAC and the Agency made it possible to successfully negotiate this renewed collective,” wrote Latourelle.

For Moar, the signing of the agreement marks the end of months spent tirelessly working on behalf of our membership.

“It was a lot of hard work, long hours, a lot of travel… and a lot of restaurant food,” said Moar, laughing.

But all that time spent away from home was worth it, she said. Given the current political climate, the bargaining team did exceptionally well. Moar says she’s proud of the deal the bargaining team secured for our members.

“It was a goal of mine. To be a partner to that, it was a really great feeling.”

The Union of National Employees wishes to take this opportunity to congratulate and thank all bargaining team members for their great work. Among its UNE members were Céline Ahodekon, Benoit Dubeau, Mike LeBlanc, Kevin King, and Loretta Moar.

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How many days off do you get?

How many days off do Canadians get? Turns out, we don’t get many!

Let’s say you’re entering a new job in the private sector; you get 10 days of annual leave and you have 5 national public holidays (ahem, that don’t fall on a weekend!). Depending on your province or territory, maybe you get another holiday or two.

According to a recent study by Hotels.com, Canadians only get 15 days of paid leave. When it comes to time away from work, Canada ranks 29th among 30 other countries.

Topping the list are Russia, Italy and Sweden, where workers get between 36 and 40 paid days off per year. Even our friends south of the border get 5 more paid days off than we do!

For a look at the greener grass on the other side of the Atlantic, we turned to Heather Brooker, regional vice-president for the Outside Canada region.

Brooker, who works in Moscow, said there’s nothing unusual about the amount of paid days off Russians get, especially compared to other European countries.

“They have a heck of a lot more stat holidays than we do here in Canada,” said Brooker.

For our members working in Canadian embassies abroad, national public holidays present a different problem.

“Our stat holidays are a combination of Canadian and Russian holidays,” explained Brooker. “So we have to give up some Canadian holidays in order to embrace the Russians.”

Likewise, Russians working as local employees in the same embassy don’t get as many holidays – and they’re stuck with holidays (such as Canada Day!) that don’t have any meaning to them.

Given the lack of access to paid time off in Canada, there’s a clear advantage to being unionized. According to the Canadian Labour Congress, most unionized workers start off with three weeks of paid vacation time. Four years later, 70% will benefit from four weeks off.

And, in this day and age, that time away from work is becoming all the more precious.

“I think that many of us aren’t easily detached from our mobile tools, whether or not you’re sitting at home,” said Brooker. “Can we really find anyone chilling out during a statutory holiday the way we were meant to 20 or 30 years ago?”

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Earth Day – April 22

Spring has finally arrived and with it, the chance to once again witness nature at its best: sprouting! What better time to celebrate our planet and reflect on the many ways we can better the environment. This Earth Day, take the time to rethink old habits and take action! The following helpful hints can get you started:

Give up your love-affair with the printer
Not everything needs to be printed! The first step towards doing away with piles of paper on your desk is to adapt an organized and intuitive way of filing your electronic documents. Also, check your printer settings. Is your printer set to print double-sided by default? This alone could cut your paper consumption in half!

Think green… procurement!
Are you in charge of ordering supplies and printed documents? Choose products that come with minimal packaging. Ask your supplier about products made from recycled materials. When ordering printed material, opt for paper that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council; they are a widely respected non-profit organization that certifies certain types of paper as being both environmentally and socially responsible choices. They also play an important role in protecting old growth forests.

Rethink your lunchbox
Waste reduction can start in the very lunchbox you bring to work. Bring beverages from home in a reusable stainless steel bottle instead of purchasing plastic water bottles or juice boxes. Bring cutlery from home instead of using disposable plastic cutlery from the cafeteria. Get inspired by the University of Victoria who banned plastic cutlery in an effort to reach zero waste; they now provide biodegradable cutlery made from bamboo! Finally, give up the ready-made meals from your store’s freezer section; a homemade meal in a reusable plastic container will have less of an impact on the environment and will, most likely, taste much better too!

Go vegetarian once a week!
You may have heard Dr. David Suzuki mention this concept before. Meat-production has a very serious impact on the environment. A United Nations report from 2006 found that raising livestock creates more carbon emissions than the world’s transportation put together1. In fact, the meat industry accounts for 18 per cent of global emissions.2 Try going vegetarian or vegan once per week – get your family and coworkers involved! You’ll reduce your carbon footprint dramatically and feel healthier. Who knows, you may even discover a new favourite recipe!

There are many ways to reduce our impact on the environment. This Earth Day, take a moment to reflect on a few ways you can do your part. For more information on earth day events across Canada and ways to take action, please visit the Earth Day Canada Web site: http://www.earthday.ca

[1] Rearing cattle produces more greenhouse gases than driving cars, UN report warns. (2006) UN News Centre.

[2] Livestock’s Long Shadow (2006). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

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Human Rights Award

The Union of National Employees is strongly committed to the promotion of human rights. While all unions have a rich history of advocating for human rights, our members are especially proud of this cause.

The award is meant to recognize a member’s exceptional work promoting human rights. The Union of National Employees is looking for nominations – the due date is August 1. More information is available here.

The last member to receive the award was Cheryl Aucoin, in 2007.

Aucoin remembers her work trying to get people with disabilities, as well as gays and lesbians recognized as equity-seeking groups within the PSAC.

“It was a struggle at the very beginning,” said Aucoin. “They certainly weren’t jumping up and down for people who were gay and lesbian.”

Aucoin says it was easier for her to advocate on behalf of her gay brothers and lesbian sisters because she was straight.

“I was very happy to take some of that stuff on,” said Aucoin, quite proudly. “I was safe as a church! But for some other folks, that wasn’t the case at all. For some, it was really quite painful.”

The PSAC finally adopted a policy against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in 1994. According to Aucoin, it was in large part due to the progressive leadership in our union.

“I think of all the components, we were the forerunner,” said Aucoin.

“In retrospect, it was probably some of the best times of my life.”

For those of you who may recognize Cheryl Aucoin’s name, she says hello! She says that while she is indeed retired, she still keeps in contact with all the PSAC members in Sydney, Nova Scotia. She still gets invited to local union events – and goes!

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Update on Pay Equity (OAG and SSHRC)

It’s mind-blowing, but it’s true; we’re still still fighting the employer on pay equity issues… in 2013!

Recently, six federal organizations arrived at a settlement on the question of pay equity. Among these are the Office of the Auditor General and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

The important thing to note is that eligible current employees do not need to apply to receive the payment. Former employees, however, have between 12 and 18 months, depending on the employer, to apply for their payments.

If you receive a payment that you feel is incorrect, you must contact the PSAC if you wish to dispute it. In most cases, you only have 60 days to do so.

For more information consult this page on the PSAC website.

“To quote Catherine Swift of the Globe and Mail, ‘pay equity is getting older and not better,’” said Heather Sams, the UNE national equity representative for women.

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Canadian women who work full-time still earn about 19% less than men.1

[1] Closing the Gap. 2012. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.