By Lisa Descary On Monday, June 29 after school had let out for the summer, most Vancouver teachers were taking a well-deserved break. However, a small but determined group of teachers and other trade unionists gathered outside the Vancouver School Board (VSB) office as the Vancouver School Trustees met to vote on the budget for Continue readingVancouver elementary teachers rally against school board austerity
education
By Lisa Descary Originally published at New Socialist, November 18 2014 It is hard to imagine that anybody who strongly supports public education in British Columbia was thrilled when the BC Liberals pulled off an unwelcome, last-minute election victory in 2013. Given the Liberals’ history of failure to address the basic needs of the public Continue readingThe 2014 BC Teachers’ Strike: Weathering a Perfect Storm
Coming out of a productive four days of workshops and cross-union collaboration at the Peoples’ Social Forum, RankandFile.ca has developed some reflections on some of the major labour struggles panning out across the country. From the attack on BC teachers to abuse in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the public is facing its fair share Continue readingFour major battles for the Canadian labour movement
Canada Post privatization | Temporary Foreign Workers | Thunder Bay Bombardier strike | sex work | Education debates | Energizer plant closure | Toronto Wheel-Trans wage cuts | Labour Force Survey | LA, Long Beach trucker strike The Smoking Gun: Harper’s plan to privatize Canada Post Mike Palecek, Rabble.ca July 11, 2014 After repeated denials Continue readingRankandFile.ca Weekly Labour Update – July 14 2014
Statement by the Vancouver Ecosocialist Group, June 15, 2014 All progressive people and groups, especially trade union members and organizations, should be on our feet at picket lines and massive rallies supporting the British Columbia teachers’ strike to win back protections for the quality education of our children. Growing class sizes and slashed special needs Continue readingSupport BC teachers’ battle against unlawful education cuts
BC teachers strike | Impark workers | Ontario minimum wage | Save Canada Post | Nova Scotia nurses | Lac-Mégantic fallout | Manitoba NDP & IBEW | GO Transit Why I’m on the picket line Tara Ehrcke, Staffroom Confidential May 31 2014 I believe I deserve a raise, but just like other teachers, that isn’t Continue readingRankandFile.ca Weekly Labour Update – June 2, 2014
BC teachers fight for a fair deal By Tara Ehrcke Bargaining chair and past president of the Greater Victoria Teachers’ Association Teachers in British Columbia will be on the picket lines beginning next Monday May 26 after 16 months of failed contract talks. The strike is province-wide and rotating – teachers will strike one day Continue readingThe ABCs of the BC teachers’ fight
Fast food strikes | Turkish mining disaster | BC teachers | Alberta teachers | Canada Post layoffs | Artists’ compensation | Ontario election | Skill shortage myth | Saskatchewan Employment Act Fight for $15: Fast food workers strike in 130 American cities Julia Kann, Labor Notes May 15 2014 Fast food workers struck in 130 Continue readingRankandFile.ca Weekly Labour Update – May 19 2014
CLC Presidential Race | Temporary foreign workers | BC sawmill explosions | BC teachers | Crown Holdings Toronto strike | Chinese shoe factory strike | Toledo autoworkers strike | Federal job cuts | Tuition fees & work hours | Nova Scotia & right-to-strike CLC Presidential Race CLC Presidential Candidate Primer Candidate websites Hassan Husseini: “Take Continue readingRankandfile.ca Weekly Labour Update – April 21 2014
On March 10 the fifty members of OPSEU 404, representing Carleton University campus security, went on strike to win a first contract after unionizing in 2013. Ottawa’s labour movement has responded by strengthening the picket lines, while Carleton University’s administration has brought in scabs from the private security firms Garda and Securitas. Samantha Ponting conducted Continue readingInterview: The OPSEU strike at Carleton U
Labor Notes, a network of rank-and-file members, local union leaders, and labor activists in the United States, is hosting a three day conference from April 4 – 6 in Chicago, Illinois. The conference will have over a hundred panels on various issues facing the labour movement, as well as skill building and educationals for union activists. There Continue readingLabor Notes Conference, April 4 to 6 – Canuck Callout
BC teachers win big court victory for education services Roger Annis, Rankandfile.ca January 29, 2014 Ontario raises minimum wage to $11/hour CBC January 30, 2014 CN, union to talk after contract rejected Toronto Star January 31, 2014 Mount Allison strikers get national show of support CBC January 31, 2014 Interview: Kathleen Wynne and Ontario’s minimum Continue readingLabour News Update – February 3 2014