![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.une-sen.org\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/catchingupwithparks1.png\" "\\"catchingupwithparks\\"")
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It\u2019s been a few weeks since our members on the Parks Canada bargaining team began meeting with members all across the country to explain the tentative agreement before them. Dozens of Locals have already cast their vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is what it\u2019s all about,\u201d said Mike LeBlanc, a UNE member on the bargaining team. \u201cIt\u2019s entirely up to the members \u2013 it\u2019s entirely democratic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over the past three weeks, LeBlanc has been to Kejimkujik National Park, the Halifax service centre, Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, Prince Edward Island National Park, Fundy National Park and Kouchibouguac National Park. Next week, he will be visiting three sites in Newfoundland.<\/p>\n
LeBlanc says the reception has been really positive. Most members are very happy with the many gains proposed; some are concerned about trading the accumulation of severance pay in order to get them.<\/p>\n
\u201cI basically explain to our members that we can negotiate with it now, or we can have it taken away from us in the legislature later,\u201d said LeBlanc. \u201cIf we go back to the bargaining table, the government is still going to push for severance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over in Quebec, meetings are also going very well. Benoit Dubeau, another member of the bargaining team, met with members in Shawinigan last week, including Local President Daniel Toutant.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe members listened very attentively to Brother Dubeau\u2019s explanations,\u201d said Toutant. \u201cWe even took the opportunity to sign up a few Rands.\u201d Take note: that\u2019s a great idea because members need to have a signed union card in order to vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe members seemed to be really happy with the answers they received.\u201d<\/p>\n
Heading west a little further, Sister Loretta Moar has been meeting with members in Ontario and Manitoba. So far, she\u2019s met with office staff in Thunder Bay, conservation members in Nipigon and members working at Pukaskwa National Park in Marathon, Ontario as well as those working at Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe meetings so far have been very good,\u201d said Moar. She added that most questions have centered around the severance package and payout options.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere have been no negative comments about any portion of the tentative agreement,\u201d said Moar.<\/p>\n
And finally, we\u2019re hoping Brother Kevin King has been travelling with some very warm long johns because he\u2019s been visiting some very cold places. Earlier last week, we posted a photo of King knee-deep in the snow in Inuvik. If you don\u2019t know where Inuvik is, it\u2019s about a 53-hour drive north of Vancouver, in the Northwest Territories\u2026 it\u2019s very very north!<\/p>\n
King also visited the members in Banff earlier this month. \u201cI spoke for about five minutes, and then answered questions for the next 25.\u201d<\/p>\n
His experience echoes that of other bargaining team members. \u201cAbout 80% of the questions centered on the end of accumulation of severance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brother King later attended meetings with members at Jasper and participated in the recent town hall against the privatization of the Canadian Rockies\u2019 hot springs. More recently, King has been meeting with members in British Columbia along with a fellow member of the bargaining committee, Sister C\u00e9line Ahod\u00e9kon.<\/p>\n
By now, some readers might be exhausted just reading about all this travelling! The members of the bargaining team worked very hard to get to a monumental tentative agreement \u2013 and their hard work continues until they reach an agreement.<\/p>\n
Brother LeBlanc said that while he really enjoys meeting members, he finds the travelling very tiresome.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re away from home a lot. You\u2019re staying in hotel rooms, eating at restaurants, spending a lot of time in airports or driving alone\u2026 it\u2019s boring,\u201d explained LeBlanc. \u201cAfter a while, you almost go nuts,\u201d he added, joking that he\u2019s been talking out loud to himself a lot lately.<\/p>\n
But LeBlanc says there are a few things that keep him going, such as the strong support he receives from his wife, Bernadette.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s awesome! Without her support and understanding, I wouldn\u2019t be able to be as involved as I am,\u201d said LeBlanc with a smile. Even apart, the couple finds ways to keep in touch.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe talk using Yahoo video, we play scrabble online together.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, LeBlanc says his cat, Belle, isn\u2019t as supportive. \u201cShe isn\u2019t supportive at all. She hates seeing the suitcase,\u201d explained LeBlanc. \u201cAnd when I finally get home, she ignores me for a few days.\u201d<\/p>\n
But despite the many days away from home and a grumpy cat that harbors a grudge, LeBlanc says getting a heartfelt \u2018thank you\u2019 makes it all worth it.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt one meeting, as everyone was rushing to leave to avoid the bad weather, I noticed an older gentleman who seemed to be hanging around,\u201d said LeBlanc. \u201cHe came up to me and said \u2018I know it\u2019s not easy work. You\u2019ve been here a few times talking about bargaining and I want to thank you for your work because you guys don\u2019t get thanked very often.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
So, please, let\u2019s all make an important mental note to thank our bargaining committee members. They work tirelessly on behalf of our members and they deserve our heartfelt thanks.<\/p>\n
You can share your thanks right now! Please leave a comment in the box below.<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s been a few weeks since our members on the Parks Canada bargaining team began meeting with members all across the country to explain the tentative agreement before them. Dozens of Locals have already cast their vote. \u201cThis is what it\u2019s all about,\u201d said Mike LeBlanc, a UNE member on the bargaining team. \u201cIt\u2019s entirely … <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.une-sen.org\/press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/IMG_20130130_095609web.jpg\" "\\"IMG_20130130_095609web\\"")