By Lee Gilchrist After a five-month strike ending on March 29, unionized workers at the Lennox & Addington Interval House in Napanee, Ontario thought the long, grueling battle was over. Management and the union’s lawyer hammered out a return-to-work protocol, and the six strikers returned to work on April 29. Then, management fired each one Continue readingUnion-busting escalates at Napanee women’s shelter
Unifor
In the latest instalment of the Work in the West interview series, Professor Charles Smith discusses the broader implications of the 2019/2020 Co-op Refinery lockout for the labour movement in Saskatchewan, including the privileging of property rights over workers’ rights, the Wagner model of industrial relations in Canada, and the use of the courts as Continue readingLocked Out: Charles Smith on the 2019-2020 Co-op Refinery lockout
In the latest instalment of the “Work in the West” podcast, former Unifor Local 594 president Kevin Bittman opens up on the 2019-2020 lockout at the Co-op Refinery in Regina. In this episode, he reflects on the implications for labour solidarity, the role of government in private-sector strikes, and the future of labour in the Continue readingLocked Out: Kevin Bittman on the 2019-2020 Co-op Refinery lockout
by Emily Leedham After two weeks of pressure from the Oshawa community, General Motors announced yesterday it would re-open a portion of the plant to manufacture one million masks per month for health care workers. Former Oshawa GM workers and health care workers held a joint-press conference on Thursday, April 9 demanding the Oshawa complex Continue reading“A great first step”: Workers respond to GM Oshawa plant conversion for PPE
by Emily Leedham Regina refinery workers have been locked out since December 5, 2019. This short video provides a recap of the struggle to the present, including the scab camp: a ticking COVID-19 time bomb. Sign the petition to shut down the scab camp here.
by Emily Leedham You can’t pay while staying six feet away. So cities across Canada are implementing free public transit and back door boarding to encourage social distancing and curb the spread of COVID-19. Free transit reduces operator interactions with riders entering and exiting the vehicle and limits operator exposure to infection. Free transit also Continue readingCities across Canada implement free transit to curb COVID-19
by Emily Leedham As the Co-op Refinery’s unionized workforce enters their third month of a lockout, Federated Co-operatives Ltd. (FCL) is expanding on-site camps for replacement workers. Unifor 594 refinery workers have been fighting rollbacks to their pensions and savings plans. “If they’re bringing in extra camps to house these workers, it’s for one reason, Continue readingCo-op’s weak OH&S fines highlight labour laws stacked against Unifor 594
by Emily Leedham On Wednesday February 5, Federated Co-operatives Ltd. CEO Scott Banda gave a shout out to United We Roll, the group responsible for last year’s well-publicized but small convoy to Ottawa claiming to defend oil and gas workers. “…I kind of noticed that United We Roll was here as well,” said Banda. “Thank Continue readingStrange new allies for FCL CEO Scott Banda
by Emily Leedham “I will always stand with Saskatchewan and the great people that reside across this great province.” Evidently, this statement from Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe doesn’t include 750 oil refinery workers who have been locked out for nearly two months by Federated Co-operatives Ltd. for trying to save their pension and savings plans. Continue readingUnited We Rollback Pensions: Refinery lockout exposes right-wing hypocrisy
Today on Rank & File Radio, an on the ground report from the Unifor 594 lockout at the Co-op Refinery in Regina, Saskatchewan. Previous coverage: Dance Parties, Personal Growth, and Police: Three Days with Locked Out Regina Oil Workers https://www.rankandfile.ca/dance-parties-personal-growth-and-police-three-days-with-locked-out-regina-oil-workers/ Labour unites around Unifor 594 after arrests at refinery lockout https://www.rankandfile.ca/labour-unites-around-unifor-594/
by Emily Leedham In a move that shocked trade unionists across the country, the Regina Police Service arrested Unifor National President Jerry Dias and thirteen other Unifor members at Gate 7 of Regina’s Co-op Refinery Complex on Monday, January 20, 2020. About 730 refinery workers, members of Local 594, have been locked out for the Continue readingLabour unites around Unifor 594 after arrests at refinery lockout
Simon Black, professor at Brock University and organizer with Labour Against the Arms Trade, discusses labour’s role in the anti-war movement, opposing Canada’s arms trade with Saudi Arabia, and a just transition for arms manufacturing workers.