Rankandfile.ca caught up with Eden Haythornthwaite to speak about the long-running annual Joseph Mairs Memorial held every year on Vancouver Island. Eden is one of the main organizer’s of the annual event. This year’s memorial is Sunday January 19 1pm at St. Mary’s Catholic Church Hall in Ladysmith. Who is Joseph Mairs, and how long Continue readingJoseph Mairs: A coal miner who never died
Articles
by Zaid Noorsumar CarePartners, a for-profit home care company, is imposing a new contract on nearly 3,000 workers in Ontario that has been effectively rejected by the bargaining committee during negotiations. For some workers, the new contract will result in an effective pay cut worth several thousand dollars. The workforce comprises predominantly women, many of Continue readingCarePartners imposes rejected contract on homecare workers
by Andrew Stevens The lockout of 700+ workers at Regina’s Cooperative Refinery Complex has now entered its third week. On the table: another round of pension concessions and the elimination of a co-funded savings plan. Under the guise of a “business continuity plan,” the Refinery has for months been preparing for what Unifor Local 594 Continue readingRegina refinery lockout is no “tea party”
by Blake McCallHamilton bus driver and member of ATU Local 107 On Thursday December 12 the Amalgamated Transit Union Canada staged an info picket at the Voyago Headquarters in London, Ontario. ATU locals from across southern Ontario participated, as well as members of OPSEU and the London and District Labour Council. The action was called Continue readingVoyago drive is frontline against transit privatization
By Doug Nesbitt and Andrew Stevens With near unanimous support from the membership, Unifor Local 594 provided the Co-operative Refinery Complex (CRC) with job action notice on December 4, 2019. The employer immediately responded by locking out over 700 workers – from process operators, building trades, lab technicians, to administrative support workers. The battle is Continue readingLocal 594 and the Lost History of Oil Worker Unionism
Today, members of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF) walk off the job to protest ongoing attacks to the education system by Doug Ford’s government. Key issues for the teachers’ job action include preserving jobs, lowering class sizes and rejecting mandatory e-learning courses for students. The one-day province-wide walk-out will close secondary schools across Continue readingOntario teachers begin one-day strike against Ford’s cuts
The Ontario Federation of Labour’s biennial convention starts on Monday. In addition to the hundreds of resolutions that will be voted on and the action plan that will be hotly debated, this convention will see an open election for the position of OFL President as outgoing president, Chris Buckley, will not be seeking another term. Continue readingQ&A with OFL Presidential candidate Barry Conway
Over the past summer, Montreal had heatwaves. Temperatures approaching 40 degrees with humidity prompted the city to issue warnings—stay hydrated, don’t spend too much time outside. Mohamed Ahmed was working during one of them, as a driver for Aux Vivres Cuisine. His job was to bring the company’s well-known vegan food to retailers across the Continue readingUnionizing a Montreal Kitchen
For nearly four months, the five Filipino janitors at the Icon condominium in downtown Toronto were locked out of their workplace. For almost four months, Emma Llanes, a cleaner at the building with six years of service, was forced to purchase her heart medications out-of-pocket, because she didn’t have access to her benefits plan. For Continue readingToronto Janitors Beat Lockout
Democracy in Bolivia is under attack. A military coup has ousted the democratically elected President, Evo Morales. Now, trade unionists and Indigenous peoples are facing violent attacks from the military and the right wing. Our government has shamefully supported this coup. These are two draft resolutions you can use in your union to raise awareness Continue readingNo to the Coup in Bolivia Draft Resolution
At 48-hours, Nova Scotia has one of the longest workweeks in the country. Before a worker is legally entitled to earn an overtime rate of pay (one-and-a half times their regular wage), they generally have to have worked 48-hours over a one-week span. The Canadian labour movement began advocating for a 9-hour work day during Continue readingReduce Nova Scotia’s Work Week
Workers in the “gig economy” are organizing to transform the precarious working conditions in their sector. On November 6, Foodora couriers and Uber drivers hosted a morning rally outside of the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) to draw attention to their respective union drives with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) and United Food Continue readingGig workers rising: Foodora couriers and Uber drivers organizing for justice