Transcript of Rank and File Radio – Prairie Edition audio of Basia Sokal’s resignation at the Winnipeg Labour Council, Tuesday, March 19, 2019. (asides, audience reactions, some repetition, and speech fillers omitted). “I just wanted to talk about my report verbally. Normally, what I do is I report on what’s been going on in the Continue readingBasia Sokal Resigns as Winnipeg Labour Council President
feminism
by Emily Leedham While we can share many facts and statistics about low-wage work as a feminist issue, our organizing practices within the labour movement needs to reflect the reality that women deserve autonomy in every step of this fight. You might know women represent over 60% of minimum wage workers across Canada. And that women Continue readingTowards a working class feminism in the Fight for $15
Rank & File Radio – Prairie Edition, February 17, 2019: Daniel Huber, founder of the Alberta Vanguard Association and Fairserve.ca, reacts to UCP leader Jason Kenney’s new proposal for a sub-minimum wage for youth and alcohol servers in Alberta. Kenney announced that idea at a recent meeting for Restaurants Canada, an industry lobby group opposed Continue readingCombating Alberta’s restaurant lobby | Worker-driven workplace inclusion
By Peter Dreier An unsung shero of the early 20th century, Rose Schneiderman organized women to fight for laws to protect them from sexual harassment and assault in the workplace. Whenever new protest movements emerge, people look to history for lessons from activists and thinkers who came before. We all stand on the shoulders of Continue readingThe working class roots of #MeToo
Karla Villanueva Danan – anak of the diaspora – is a second-generation Pinay born and raised on Treaty 7 land. Across academic and artistic disciplines, Karla is most passionate about creating and holding space for Pinay/Filipinx diasporic stories. She is an avid practitioner of shine theory and cares deeply for community/collective healing and growth. Karla Continue readingPinay Power: Celebrating Peminisms in the Diaspora with Karla Villanueva Danan
By Haseena Manek Hotel workers facing sexual harassment from guests hand list of demands to Marriott bosses at UN Labour Council meeting in Geneva During the United Nations International Labour Organization Conference in Geneva last month, hotel workers from across the globe met to discuss the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace and hand Continue readingHotel workers from around the world challenge sexual harassment
By Alice Kessler-Harris In the wake of the #MeToo uprising, I picked up a small and dusty mass-market paperback from my bookshelves. Published forty years ago, Lin Farley’s Sexual Shakedown documented women’s pervasive experiences of sexual intimidation and outright abuse on the job. Crucially, she insisted that until we understand the systemic role that verbal Continue readingThe long history of workplace sexual harassment
By Nora Loreto Are union communicators prepared for the moment that #metoo involves one of their union’s leaders? What are the crisis communications plans for unions if someone (or many people) make a claim of sexual assault or harassment against someone currently or formerly involved with the union, whether in leadership or as staff? These Continue readingUnion communications strategies and the #MeToo campaign
By Jane Slaughter Sexual harassment doesn’t happen just to glamorous women in glamorous industries. Since sexual harassment is about power, not sex, it’s not surprising that low-wage women in lousy jobs get a lot of it. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says the restaurant industry is the largest source of sexual harassment claims. In a Continue readingNo Casting Couch for Low-Wage Women, But Lots of Sexual Harassment
By Shellie Bird, Candace Rennick, and Michael Hurley In 1991, 20 per cent of childcare workers belonged to a union. This stands at 21 per cent today.[1] Despite their stated commitment to organize women in the wage ghetto of childcare, unions have essentially forsaken one of the most vulnerable, underpaid and undervalued female dominated workforces Continue readingChildcare Now! The Struggle for Quality, Universal Childcare
By Sonia Singh When we think of the biggest issues at work, wages and benefits usually top the list. But in many industries, sexual harassment and assault are huge concerns—even if nobody’s talking about it. Workers who experience harassment on the job can file charges with the federal Equal Employment Opportunities Commission, but they face Continue readingBreaking the Silence on Sexual Harassment
By Nora Loreto Feeling down? Don’t worry: we have the tools we need to fight back against the politics that delivered Donald Trump’s victory. We just need to readjust our priorities. 1. Mobilizing within the membership. The most basic tenet of union organizing is often the one that gets forgotten the fastest. Unions need to Continue reading10 things Canada’s labour movement can learn from Donald Trump’s victory