June 15, 2017 TORONTO- Unifor welcomes the Heritage Committee report on Canadian media and local news. “The Heritage Committee conducted a 15-month study of Canadian media and have recommended 21st century solutions for 21st century problems,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias.
June 12, 2017 Toronto – Today's child care announcement by federal and provincial and territorial ministers responsible for early childhood education on a long-awaited framework agreement falls far short of what Canadians need. "Children are missing out on early learning and development opportunities and society is missing out on the talents of workers - mostly women - who cannot afford to enter or re-enter the workforce," said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President.
Toronto - Unifor is calling on the federal and provincial governments to put a halt to the practice by clinics of charging user-fees for necessary health services, as found in a ground-breaking new report by the Ontario Health Coalition.
“Health care should never be a money-making venture,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. “The growth in private clinics is undermining universal accessible health care. Governments should not be so naïve to believe that the two can co-exist, without destroying our cherished public health care system.”
Joe Lucier and Cathy Baker-Wiebenga will be available at Local 127 - 405 Riverview Drive, Suite 305 Chatham, ON at the following times to answer questions and help members with their pension option statements.
The Union is still dealing with a number of issues that concern the packages that Navistar workers received from Morneau Shepell - we are in the midst of correcting these issues.
Thursday, June 1, 2017 Prince George—Pattern bargaining for Western Canada’s pulp and paper sector has concluded with a four-year tentative agreement signed by Unifor, the Public and Private Workers of Canada (PPWC), and Canfor Pulp. “The tentative agreement signed today reflects the important contributions of our members at pulp and paper workplaces across the West,” said Joie Warnock, Unifor’s Western Regional Director. Today’s tentative agreement with Canfor Pulp will set the pattern for Unifor and PPWC’s 17 other pulp and paper mills in BC and Alberta.
Ottawa—The relief package for the softwood lumber industry is welcomed by forestry workers as a good start to cushioning the blow dealt by new U.S. duties on Canadian softwood exports.
“Today the federal government has shown real leadership in protecting good resource jobs,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “This is welcome news for dozens of communities that are already feeling the pain of unfair trade sanctions.”
Monday, May 29, 2017 Victoria—The coalition announced by BC NDP Leader John Horgan and BC Green Leader Andrew Weaver reflects the will of BC’s voters and can initiate positive change, says Unifor. “This is a historic day that our members worked very hard for,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “The BC Liberals governed for their wealthy donors.
Thursday, May 25, 2017 Edmonton—Members of Unifor Local 21-A have voted to ratify a new three-year collective agreement with Imperial Oil at its Strathcona facility. “This was a tough round of negotiations but our bargaining committee persevered with a deal that they can be proud of,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. The new contract meets the intent of Unifor’s national pattern for bargaining in the energy sector and includes wage increases of 2% in year two and 2.5% in year three.
Tuesday, May 16, 2017 Nanticoke—The Unifor bargaining committee representing workers at the Nanticoke Imperial Oil facility have reached a tentative collective agreement with the employer. “I’m very proud of the skill shown by the bargaining team to get us a fair deal that matches the pattern Unifor set in the industry,” said Dan Valente, Unifor National Representative. “It was not easy but we achieved our main goals.” Unifor bargained a pattern agreement for the energy and chemical sector in 2016.
Wednesday, May 10, 2017 Vancouver—A likely BC Liberal minority government means that major pieces of legislation will require discussion, debate, and cooperation in the next legislative session. “Despite what our antiquated first past the post system produced last night, it’s clear that a majority of British Columbians want change,” said Joie Warnock, Unifor Western Regional Director.
Campbell River—Workers at the Myra Falls mine were surprised to learn that an area BC Liberal candidate was taking credit for the mine’s re-opening.
“Workers don’t appreciate being used as pawns in the election,” said Joie Warnock, Unifor Western Director. “Wearing a hard hat at a photo op is not the same thing as negotiating the re-opening of a mine.”
Unifor joined with a coalition of progressive groups to condemn attempts to revive the Trans-Pacific Partnership without the United States, including hosting meeting a meeting in Toronto of participating countries. "We were told we had to be in the TPP because the U.S. was in it. Now, the U.S. is out," said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. "Why would we revive a trade deal that was so bad for Canadian workers and communities?" For more details, click here.
Monday, May 1, 2017 Vancouver—After months of bargaining, a four-year tentative agreement between Unifor and Loomis Express was signed late Sunday night. “The bargaining committee has secured a deal that includes strong gains for Loomis Express workers,” said Todd Romanow, Unifor National Representative. “I’m very proud of what the committee was able to achieve.” Unifor’s members at Loomis Express have been bargaining since January 2017. In March, union members voted 93% in favour of a strike if the company couldn’t negotiate a fair agreement by early May.
Regina—Unifor is calling on the Sask Party government to disclose why it is in such a hurry to make Bill 40 law, especially given an election promise to keep Crown corporations public.
“On Monday Bill 40 hadn’t been studied by a legislative committee. On Thursday it is law. Why the rush?” said Joie Warnock, Unifor Western Director. “Has Brad Wall already agreed to privatize something behind closed doors?”
Thursday, April 27, 2017 Vancouver—Contract talks between Unifor and Loomis Express may not be progressing enough to avoid job action, according to Unifor’s chief negotiator at the table. “I’m not encouraged by the pace of bargaining at this late stage,” said Todd Romanow, Unifor National Representative. “Our members deserve a contract that acknowledges their important contributions to the profitability of Loomis Express.” On April 21 Unifor’s members at Loomis voted to strike if bargaining doesn’t achieve a fair collective agreement by early May.
Unifor’s campaign against Bill C-27 has forced the federal government to take a step back, halting the bill’s progression. The campaign continues to seek full withdrawal of the proposed legislation, which threatens pension security for members in federally regulated sectors.
“This shows the power of political lobbying,” said Jerry Dias, National President. “The Liberal government tried to ram this through but the tremendous online response has made them think twice.”
Regina—Another Brad Wall election promise was broken today as the Sask Party government used its majority to force through legislation to enable privatization of Crown corporations. “
Bill 40 has one goal: to make it easier to sell off our Crown corporations,” said Joie Warnock, Unifor Western Region Director. “Privatization of any fraction of Crown corporations is a betrayal of what Brad Wall told voters in 2016.”
Monday, April 24, 2017 Ottawa—Canada’s 202,000 forestry workers are waiting with bated breath to see if Prime Minister Trudeau has a plan to deal with U.S. lumber tariffs—which could be levied as early as Tuesday. “It’s hard to exaggerate the impact tariffs will have on hundreds of small communities. The federal government needs to have a plan in place and act swiftly,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. As Canada’s third largest export sector, forestry directly employs 202,000 people in every region of the country.
Toronto—The re-introduction of duties on Canadian softwood exports will endanger upwards of 25,000 good jobs in nearly every region of the country, according to Unifor.
“Workers on both sides of the border will be the losers of a trade war,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “Tariffs on our lumber have already been squashed. The Americans should have learned their lesson the first time.”
Thursday April 20, 2017 Paul Godfrey, President and CEO of Postmedia and Brian Gibson, President of the Media Union of BC, Unifor Local 2000 are pleased to announce that the tentative collective agreement announced on April 15, 2017 was ratified at a vote of members on April 19, 2017. “This is a good example of management and the union working together to find efficiencies within the collective agreement that allowed us to preserve content and invest in our editorial products,” said Paul Godfrey.
Unifor National President Jerry Dias told a Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs that rather than review how to implement CETA, they should reject the deal - saying there has never been a proper review, and that there have been too many changes since a partial text was first released. For more information, click here.
Tuesday, April 11, 2017 Winnipeg—Conservative Premier Brian Pallister’s second budget puts the province’s future at risk with cuts to services and higher costs for young people. “Cuts are cuts, and Manitoba’s families will feel them immediately,” said Paul McKie, Unifor Area Director. Unifor says that Minister of Finance Cameron Friesen is misleading Manitobans when he claims that there are tax cuts in the budget because students and families will pay more as a result of higher tuition fees and less financial aid.
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