Unions being spoken of in a positive light? It’s rare, trust us… we know!

But last week, we stumbled upon a few great pieces that praised unions. Since we’re rather used to being maligned, we thought we’d share these with you… (you know, for some good news for a change!).

First up, as part of its Wealth Paradox series examining the income divide in Canada, the Globe and Mail’s Greg Keenan pointed to unions as one of the forces against income inequality – and how, unfortunately, the decrease in union membership is a contributing factor to our present income gap. (so, there’s a bit of bad news in here after all – sorry!).

“The drop in unionized jobs ripples throughout the economy – in part because when enough workers are members of unions, their wage and benefit levels set standards that non-unionized companies usually have to meet.”

And though stagnant wages are an issue, upward social mobility is another. While post-secondary education is one way to pull yourself up by your bootstraps, the article does point to unionized jobs as “a ticket to the middle class” for workers without the degree.

South of the border, where the income gap is the widest of any industrialized society, unions were also portrayed in a positive light by someone who’s soon to have a lot of influence on the global economy.

Last week, during her senate confirmation hearing to become chairwoman of the Federal Reserve, Vice-chairwoman Janet Yellen pointed to the decline of unions as one of the contributing factors to income inequality, which she characterized as a “very serious problem” in the United States.

“The head of the Fed is one of the most powerful people on the planet,” said Cenk Uygur, host and co-founder of The Young Turks, a progressive web-based news show.

“You can’t argue that having the head of the Fed saying that we need to strengthen unions and crack down on Wall Street deregulation, that that doesn’t increase the chances that you at least stop the endless separation between the rich and poor,” said power panelist Ben Mankiewicz.

Last but not least, The Simpsons also showcased unions in a positive light last Sunday. In this particular episode, entitled Labor Pains, Lisa Simpson convinces a group of underpaid and exploited cheerleaders to unionize.

“Don’t worry, collective bargaining will enable us to secure concessions,” said Lisa… before opting for rallying chant better tailored to her audience.

“We’re gonna push ‘em back. Push ‘em back. Push ‘em way, way back. All the way to a new contract. Cause union power is a fact!”

Mike LeBlanc, a Simpsons fan and an assistant regional vice-president in the Atlantic region, said the latest episode was particularly topical.

“The Simpsons are just a mirror of what is going on in society,” said LeBlanc. “Maybe people are finally realizing that unions are a good thing.”

LeBlanc said he was happy to see Lisa, the most progressive character on the show, fight unfair labour practices.

“And there was one point in the show that really reminded me of my own experience on the bargaining team,” he added.

In that particular scene, the rich Texan boss says, “fine. I’m gonna give it some thought, then say no in the nicest way possible.”

Spoiler alert! (Seriously! Spoiler alert!)

Luckily for the cheerleaders, they end up winning the fight against their employer and get a wage increase (at the expense of the non-unionized peanut vendors, unfortunately!).

Have you seen some positive stories featuring unions? Why not share them in the comments! Better yet, share them on our Facebook page or Tweet them to us at @my_une.

Full disclosure: some of us have never been to an annual general meeting. To get a better idea of what happens at these things, the UNE communications officer was sent to spy on the AGM of Local 70130.

This particular Local represents all members of the Passport Program at Citizenship and Immigration and Service Canada in the National Capital Region. It’s a Local that represents close to 900 members! To be precise, it includes members working at the mail-in centre, the call centre, headquarters and at the two passport counter offices in the Ottawa-Gatineau area.

Given the mix of French and English-speaking members there, Local President Rose Touhey and Local Vice-President Karl Lafrenière took turns explaining the proceedings in both official languages. This allowed everyone to fully participate.

And over and above the tasty coffee and snacks, members were also treated to a few words from their elected representatives and union staff.

We heard that the commissionaires were starstruck when they saw PSAC Regional Executive Vice-President Larry Rousseau walk into the building – let’s just say that he’s been spending a lot of time on TV these days!

Rousseau came to the meeting to meet members and talk about how the Budget Implementation Act (Bill C-4) is likely to impact us.

“The Conservative government is trying to take away our rights as workers – to take away our ability to get to the kind of collective agreement we want to have.” said Rousseau. “And that is what is absolutely unacceptable here.”

Rousseau also took the time to commend the Local for their hard work. This particular Local has worked tremendously hard to achieve better working conditions and establish better relations with management.

“If I need examples to give to other Locals as to how things can work, I draw them from Local 70130,” said Rousseau to enthusiastic applause.

Those sentiments were later echoed by Labour Relations Officer Jim McDonald.

“Over the past couple of years, we’ve addressed some tough issues. We’ve had some great successes and we’ve set some important precedents – and all the while, we’ve been able to maintain and foster good relations with our counterparts at Passport Canada,” said McDonald.

“This Local works very hard; they sure keep me busy,” he added. “My phone rings off the wall!”

UNE National President Doug Marshall also took the opportunity to talk about the important changes to collective bargaining hidden in Bill C-4.

“This government is preparing things for us,” said Marshall. “This bill is designed to weaken our ability to deal with the employer and deal with the issues that you wish to have in your collective agreement.”

“The government wants to eliminate other negotiation options and send us to the Public Interest Commission,” warned Marshall. “What the commission is going to look at is the state of the economy – not whether your wages are fair, not whether your terms and conditions are the same as the outside – they’re going to look at the economy.”

Needless to say, the economy isn’t doing so well these days!

Marshall also took the time to encourage members to think about bargaining demands (side note: if your Local belongs to a Treasury Board or Parks Canada bargaining unit, the deadline for your Local to submit bargaining demands is November 15!). Local 70130 will hold a meeting to discuss bargaining very shortly.

This meeting also became a great opportunity to quickly explain the success of the web-based campaign we launched regarding the dissolution of Passport Canada. The government released the news last May, smack dab in the middle of a Senate scandal and another scandal involving a certain notorious Toronto mayor. Despite our attempts, the media just wasn’t interested in our scandal-free story.

The good news is that our campaign reached well over 1.5 million Canadians – and it drove nearly ten thousand of those to our website for more information. We also received tons of testimonials about the great work Passport Canada employees provide. Whether communicating to us via email, Facebook or Twitter, Canadians were clear: they love Passport Canada and they weren’t happy with the government’s decision.

That campaign managed to revive some media interest in the story, right before July 2 – the official date marking the end of Passport Canada.

Finally, it wouldn’t be an annual general meeting without the basics! After the budget was explained and approved by the membership, elections were promptly held.

Since this is such a large Local, half the executive positions are up for election on alternating years. Once elected, these officials serve a two-year term.

Karl Lafrenière, who also serves as an assistant regional vice-president for the Outside Canada region, was re-elected to the position of Local Vice-President. Isabelle Beaudoin, who also serves as a regional human rights representative on the same regional team, was re-elected to the position of third local vice-president.

The elections also saw Jean-François Lamothe re-elected as secretary and Kasandra De Lima re-elected as human rights representative. Kenton Little and Darrel Klerks were both newly-elected to the positions of building vice-presidents for their respective buildings.

And, last but not least, Benoit Brosseau was appointed as a new shop steward.

We’d like to extend our thanks to members of Local 70130 for allowing us to attend their annual general meeting. We wish all elected officers the best of luck!

The PSAC held a press conference today at its headquarters to share its views on Bill C-4; the most recent omnibus budget bill that’s jam-packed with troubling changes. Union leaders are alarmed by the government’s continued assault on collective bargaining rights, health and safety in the workplace and options for victims of discrimination.

“These amendments, if passed, will roll back the state of labour relations thirty years by giving the employer extraordinary unchecked powers in all workplace matters,” said PSAC National President Robyn Benson.

“This legislation is unreasonable, and unfair.”

The government wants the exclusive right to determine which members are deemed essential. It also wants to require a consensus from both parties before moving to arbitration.

On the health and safety front, the union warned that the government’s decision to gut to the Canada Labour Code will be disastrous for both represented members and non-represented workers.

“Bill C-4 is life-threatening,” cautioned PSAC National Executive Vice-President Chris Aylward.

“The bill changes the definition of ‘danger’ to only include ‘imminent’ risks,” he explained. “This means that workers will have to be in harm’s way before they can establish that their working conditions are dangerous.”

The bill strips all authority and powers from health and safety officers and bestows them upon the minister. Aylward believes these changes will make it far easier for employers to ignore health and safety issues.

He also warned that these changes will politicize the process of monitoring and enforcing health and safety protections.

“Just yesterday on CBC Morning, Mr. Clement said ‘safety and security shouldn’t be a negotiable item,’” said UNE National President Doug Marshall, who was also on hand to field questions from the media. “Well, Mr. Clement, why is the Harper government weakening the Canada Labour Code? These changes mean that more Canadian workers will be killed in the workplace.”

“There’s one fundamental belief that’s present in every household across Canada,” said Marshall. “That’s the belief that when your loved ones leave for work in the morning, they’re coming home at the end of the day.”

“Too many people have been killed as a result of unsafe working conditions. They’ve paid the ultimate price for these protections – it’s an insult to their sacrifice to weaken these laws that keep Canadian workers safe.”

Have you ever asked someone to sign a union card only to be asked “what has the union done for me lately?”

Well, in the hopes you’re not asked that question next time you go around the office with union cards, here’s a little poster that will help you spread some good union news:

It was only a few months ago that the government was rather intent on introducing pay in arrears. Had the employer had its way, our members would have seen 4% shaved off every paycheque in 2014. Ouch!

The union fought against pay in arrears – and won! We think that’s a pretty important victory; let’s make sure our members remember that we were fighting for them!

You can download this poster by clicking here (PDF).

Another gift from the Harper Government

Every time a new budget bill comes around lately, it’s always chock-full of surprises… and not the good kind!

There are many things that are troubling about this particular Budget Implementation Act. We released a statement yesterday expressing our concern for the collective bargaining process, health and safety in the workplace and the rights of those who are victims of discrimination.

Collective bargaining rights under attack

The government’s bill has already been described as having “surprise reforms aimed at weakening public service unions”.

The government wants more control over the collective bargaining process; it wants to decide who can strike and who can’t… mostly who can’t! From the Ottawa Citizen’s Kathryn May:

“The most worrisome reform revolves around the right to arbitration as a way to settle contract disputes. The government intends to only allow arbitration if both parties — Treasury Board and the unions — agree. If they don’t agree, conciliation and a possible strike are the only other alternatives for unions to settle labour disputes.

At the same time, however, the government has reserved the “exclusive” right to decide which jobs will be designated ‘essential’ which means employees in those jobs can’t strike. Employees in bargaining groups where the government has designated 80 per cent to be essential will be allowed to seek arbitration to settle impasses.”

Our union is outraged that the government would attempt to remove arbitration as a key option in the collective bargaining process. By restricting our options at the bargaining table, the government is demonstrating its contempt for a fair collective bargaining process.

Taking the teeth out of health and safety legislation

Equally worrisome is the fact that this government is once again putting Canadian workers’ lives at risk. If this bill sees royal assent, health and safety officers at the Labour Program will effectively be stripped of their power and authority, which will then be handed over to the minister.

Health and safety officers are responsible for enforcing Part II of the Canada Labour Code, which applies to 10% of workplaces across the country.

“Every single reference to a ‘health and safety officer’ is being replaced by ‘the minister’,” explained National President Doug Marshall. “From a political perspective, there’s no longer any arm’s length; this opens the door to politics interfering with enforcement of the Canada Labour Code.”

Our members working as health and safety officers aren’t surprised; the Labour Program has been tightening the shackles, making it increasingly difficult for these members to carry out their regular duties and almost impossible to prosecute employers.

“The department has set it up so that health and safety officers have to ask for permission each time they travel to perform workplace safety inspection activity,” said Marshall.

“They used to be able to do their work and put in their expense claims afterwards – but now, they have to predict all their expenses and get senior management approval in advance – there’s a huge administrative burden being placed on people who are already dealing with serious safety complaints and worker fatality investigations.”

A major change in the budget bill centres on refusal-to-work legislation. It’s important to remember that there are countless men and women who paid the ultimate price for refusal-to-work legislation – and it’s being gutted.

The government wants to change the definition of “danger” to re-introduce the term “imminent”. This term had been removed decades ago and represents a huge set-back in terms of worker safety. This would dramatically affect health and safety officers’ response. At present, a refusal to perform unsafe work generates an immediate intervention by a health and safety officer.

“Adding the word imminent means that unless an unguarded saw blade is about to cut your arm off, no one’s coming right away,” said Marshall. “You’re being asked to work with asbestos? Well that’s not going to give you lung cancer in the next thirty seconds – it’s not an imminent danger.”

These are emergency situations; and with budget cut-backs, health and safety officers already feel pressured to conduct these important investigations by phone…. !

The bill also includes a bunch of downright bizarre changes, such as allowing for the labour code to be enforced electronically (which the Labour Program has interpreted to mean that carrying out “virtual investigations” will be accepted under the law…) and the ability for the minister to delegate health and safety officers’ powers to third parties or the provinces.

Taking away options for the victims of discrimination

On the human rights front, the bill will completely eliminate the right of public service employees from filing discrimination complaints with the Canadian Human Rights Commission, instead requiring them to go to the Public Service Labour Relations Board with discrimination issues. Although many discrimination cases already go to the Public Service Labour Relations Board, the right to file a human rights complaint, and the involvement of the Commission Human Rights Canada in some cases, has been very important to ensuring that our members have a full access to the rights and remedies available under the Canadian Human Rights Act, as all other federal workers do.  This is especially important in cases where discrimination affects many workers in a workplace.  This change will shut that door permanently.

Additionally, the bill plans to merge the Public Service Staffing Tribunal with the Public Service Relations Board, which would then be renamed the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board.

And while we’re on this government’s favourite topic (renaming stuff for no apparent reason), the bill also plans to rename Human Resources and Skills Development Canada to the Department of Employment and Social Development.

This story is developing; the PSAC and the UNE are working together to meet this bill with direct action.  Please keep an eye on our website and the PSAC’s website. Better yet, follow us on Facebook or Twitter to get the latest breaking news.