This is Day 23 for the United Auto Workers’ strike vs. GM. Today’s Detroit Free Press says at least three items have not been resolved: How long it takes “in-progression” workers (the second tier) to move up to their top level. It’s currently eight years to move from $17 an hour to $28—and their ceiling Continue readingWhat’s Behind GM’s Hardball Stance vs. UAW?
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On Sunday night hours from a strike deadline, CUPE representing 55,000 Ontario education workers, announced they achieved restored services for students and a fair contract for workers. For months, the government has been playing hardball with workers, students and parents in the education system. But workers, students and parents are fighting back. CUPE’s incredible win Continue readingWalk-in to Fight Ford’s Education Cuts
On Wednesday afternoon, 125 labour and community activists assembled outside of Fiera Foods for a solidarity rally organized by Fight for $15 & Fairness and Jane and Finch Action Against Poverty (JFAAP). Last week, Enrico Miranda, a 57 year old father of two, was killed at work. As Toronto Star journalist Sara Mojtehedzadeh reported: “He Continue readingNo More Deaths: Rally at Fiera Foods
It is a tragic irony that General Motors (GM) chose its hundredth anniversary in Oshawa to announce the December 2019 closure of its Oshawa assembly plant. This means the loss of over 15,000 jobs in Ontario: 2,200 GM assembly jobs, 300 salaried positions, 500 temporary contract positions, 1,000 inside and 1,000 outside supplier jobs, and Continue readingTake the Plant, Save the Planet
On September 27, workers across the world went out on strike in the largest global climate strike in history, walking out of their classrooms and workplaces to protest government inaction on climate change. This comes following the September 20 ‘School Strike for Climate’, which saw millions of young people and students in over 150 countries Continue readingCanadian Unions and a Green New Deal
A week after mass mobilizations across the globe the climate strike is coming to Canada. Major actions are set to take place right across the country. In Montreal, 300,000 are expected for the main rally. Eleven unions are participating and the city is offering free public transit for the day. This massive show of force Continue readingThe climate strike is a gift for unions
About fifteen years ago, I was working with a union doing organizing work while on leave from my unionized job that I worked at to pay for my education. It was my first official role in a union other than being a steward on the floor. The union had paired ‘newbies’ with ‘experienced’ people. I Continue reading#MeToo in labour
When asked why he’s planning to support the Global Climate Strike slated for September 20, Larry Hopkins, a rail crew driver for the transportation and maintenance company Hallcon, says the reason is simple: “I want to help preserve and protect our personal safety. Because right now, we’re in a climate emergency that is very bad Continue readingWhat Backing The Climate Strike Means For Unions
Earlier this year baristas employed by the Smiling Goat learned the hard way how vulnerable they are. This summer employees of a coffee shop in Bedford received a similar grim reminder. To the surprise of both its customers and its employees, The Nook Espresso Bar and Lounge closed its Bedford location in late July of Continue readingBaristas fight back after Halifax coffee shop closes
Forty-nine thousand auto workers are on strike at General Motors in the largest private sector strike since the last time union and company clashed, in 2007. Production has stopped at 55 factories and parts centers. According to various analysts, the strike could cost GM $50 million to $100 million per day in profits. Before the Continue readingGM Strikers Say ‘No More Tiers!’
In January 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that “[t]he right to strike is an essential part of a meaningful collective bargaining system” and effectively made blanket bans on public sector strikes unconstitutional. As was required of all provinces in the wake of the ruling, Alberta’s then-New Democratic Party (NDP) government enacted legislation in 2016—Bill 4, An Continue readingRethinking Alberta’s essential services legislation
In August, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) released their report “A Rising Tide to Lift All Boats”, making several recommendations to improve existing employment legislation in Nova Scotia. This 2019 report is a follow-up to the 2012 CCPA report, and provides and updated and in-depth critique of the laws currently governing employment relationships Continue readingNova Scotia’s workers are falling behind