Coalition stands up for the educational needs of our children

On Monday, October 28 the Kids Not Cuts Alberta coalition will hold a press conference in Edmonton. Monday marks the opening of the Alberta Legislature and Kids Not Cuts Alberta will use the occasion to highlight the negative impacts of cuts and to urge provincial politicians of all parties to make improved education funding an immediate priority.

When:                       Monday, October 28, 11:00 a.m.

Where:                     Alberta Legislature Press Room

Who:                          Don Boucher, Kids Not Cuts Alberta Co-Chair

                                    Mike Scott, president CUPE Local 30

                                    Members from the Kids Not Cuts Coalition

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olav Rokne, AFL Communications Director at 780-289-6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected].

New research shows just how bad the fast-track was, and why it shouldn’t be brought back 

An investigation into the scandal-ridden fast-track for Temporary Foreign Worker employers shows that approved applications often fail to meet official guidelines. Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan will be making a presentation about the Temporary Foreign Worker program on Friday, Oct. 25 from 9:00 a.m. – 9:20 a.m. at a conference on “Transforming Citizenship: Ethnicity, Transnationalism & Belonging in Canada.” Media are welcome to attend. McGowan will be available to the media after his talk.

When: Friday, October 25, 9:00 a.m. – 9:20 a.m.

Where: Campus Saint-Jean, 8406 Marie-Anne-Gaboury Street, 91 Street, Edmonton

Who: Gil McGowan, president, Alberta Federation of Labour

What: New research on the Temporary Foreign Worker program

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olav Rokne, AFL Communications Director at 780-289-6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected].

Deal will provide yet another avenue for employers to choose foreign workers over Canadians

EDMONTON – The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) signed between Canada and the European Union will disrupt the Canadian labour market by allowing European firms to bypass Canadian workers when doing business here.

“This deal will essentially create another stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program,” Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan said. “Documents made available today by the European Union show that the CETA will allow European companies to bring staff along with them when they set up shop in Canada. The documents also show that the deal will liberalize the Canadian energy market.”

The European Union’s announcement of the CETA shows that it will “make it easier for firms to move staff temporarily between the EU and Canada. This will make it easier for European companies to run their operations in Canada.” [Click here to link to CETA document] It also shows the CETA will allow European firms to access the Canadian market in “key sectors” such as energy. The Harper government’s announcement on the deal makes no mention of the effect on Canadian workers other than to say states the “rights of workers will be respected.”

“The Harper government’s announcement of the deal has no details whatsoever, but, judging from the European Union’s information, we can only conclude that this deal allows European firms – especially those operating in Alberta’s oil sands – to bring their own workers from overseas instead of hiring Canadians first.

And we’re not just talking about trade’s people here. We’re also talking about engineers, managers and other professional workers,” McGowan said. “It’s strange, though not unexpected, that the Harper government’s announcement heralding the deal is silent on the fact that the CETA will allow European firms to bring their own labour when doing business in Canada.”

In light of the Harper Government’s track record with guest worker programs, labour activists say that Canadians should be concerned about the labour mobility clauses in the CETA.

“The Harper government simply cannot be trusted when it comes to workers rights,” McGowan said. “They’ve fumbled the Temporary Foreign Worker Program file by only listening to the interests of businesses, not those of the workers on job sites earning a living working with their hands and backs.”

“Canadian workers should brace themselves for further displacement by workers from overseas, especially in the oil sands.”

MEDIA CONTACT:

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]

Urgent Action

Parkland Institute Annual Conference

The Parkland Institute is putting Facts, Fictions, and the Politics of Truth under the microscope at their 17^th Annual Conference, Nov. 22-24 at the University of Alberta.

The conference will examine how governments have been increasingly limiting the ability of scientists to speak about their research, and how important research has been defunded.

Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Chris Hedges will be presenting a keynote speech on his latest book Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt. Other speakers will include Arno Kepecky, Katie Gibbs, and internationally syndicated columnist Michael Geist.

For more information, please visit the convention page at http://parklandinstitute.ca/fallconf2013  

News 

Superstore Workers Win Vastly Improved Offer After Three-Day Strike

UFCW 401 celebrated a victory in the fight for fair wages after signing a new contract with Loblaws.

More than 8,500 workers returned to work after a three-day strike was resolved with a new collective agreement.

“The new contract is one that the employees can be proud of, and now includes none of the most troubling concessions that were there when they went on strike,” UFCW president Douglas O’Halloran said.

The improvements in the newly ratified deal include wage increases in every year of the Collective Agreement, along with retroactive pay, as well as money for a brand new sick pay plan for part-time workers and significant improvements to the full-time benefits. 

“We’re proud of our brothers and sisters at UFCW who stood up to unreasonable employer demands, and won a major victory,” Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan said. “Many AFL members from a broad cross section of the labour movement are glad to have stood in solidarity with UFCW. The number of our members – and the number of Albertans – who refused to cross the picket line was inspiring.”

Help Defend Alberta Pensions

On Sept. 16, most Alberta public sector unions received word from the Redford Government that it intends to implement major change to public sector pension plans, including the Local Authorities Pension Plan (LAPP), which includes many of our members.

For now, affected unions are working together to change the government’s mind. The coalition includes the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, Alberta Colleges and Institutes Faculties Association, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Health Sciences Association of Alberta, United Nurses of Alberta and the Alberta Federation of Labour.

Hardworking Alberta workers deserve a decent, predictable and secure retirement income after years of working and contributing to their pension plan. This real retirement security is best and most efficiently provided by a jointly governed defined benefit pension plan. For public-sector workers, the Local Authorities Pension Plan has worked for 50 years and it can continue working into the future without drastic changes so long as workers and employers are given the ability to manage the plan.

The Alberta Federation of Labour urges you to let the government know that you oppose the undermining of Alberta’s public-sector pension plans. Visit the website www.defendalbertapensions.ca to send a letter to Finance Minister Doug Horner.

AFL Makes Final Argument in Favour of Enbridge Line 9 Pipeline

The Alberta Federation of Labour president submitted final arguments to the National Energy Board in favour of the Enbridge Line 9 Project today.

AFL president Gil McGowan said he supports Line 9 because it keeps value-added jobs in Canada, and is good for the people of Alberta and the people of Quebec. Line 9 will expand and reverse the flow of Line 9 and 9B, connecting the Synthetic Crude Oil coming from Alberta's upgraders to refineries in Quebec.

"Line 9 connects Alberta's upgraders, and all the good-paying jobs that go with them, to refineries in Quebec, where thousands of good jobs are also at stake. It provides a market for synthetic crude, and keeps value-added jobs in both our provinces," McGowan said. "Line 9 allows Quebec refineries to stop importing higher-cost crude from Angola, Nigeria, and Algeria, and instead allows them to buy Alberta's upgraded products, which enhances Canadian energy security."

The AFL is a frequent intervener in National Energy Board pipeline proceedings. The Federation has intervened against Keystone, Keystone XL, Southern Lights, Alberta Clipper, and Northern Gateway, on the grounds that these pipelines ship raw bitumen, and therefore value-added jobs, down the pipeline to the United States or China. This is the first time the Federation has intervened in favour of a pipeline project at the National Energy Board.

Download the AFL press release issued Oct 3:“AFL Makes Final Argument in Favour of Enbridge Line 9 Pipeline”: http://www.afl.org/index.php/Press-Release/afl-makes-final-argument-in-favour-of-enbridge-line-9-pipeline.html

Did you know…

•  The average LAPP pension is just under $14,958 per year – and only after years of work and pension contributions.

• The LAPP Pension Fund fluctuates in value because of the stock market. It is currently on track to be in surplus within 10 years.

• Almost one in every 10 Albertans has a stake in either the LAPP or the PSPP.

Events

November 1: Alberta NDP Convention in Lethbridge
November 22-24: Parkland Institute Conference in Edmonton
December 10: AFL Open House…in the new Office!

Alberta Federation of Labour blasts Harper for helping employers put Canadians out of work at Husky Sunrise project

Edmonton – Almost 300 Canadians are no longer working at the Husky Sunrise project near Fort McMurray because they’ve been replaced by a firm that makes extensive use of the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program.

The site – located 60 kilometres north of Fort McMurray – is the workplace for more than 1,500 people. It is estimated that less than a third of those workers are Canadian.

In September, more than 270 employees of Toronto-based Black and MacDonald were told they were no longer working at the Husky Sunrise site. Italian-owned oil sands firm Saipem Canada Inc.’s, which makes extensive use of the TFW program, has since taken over the contract.

“Barely six months ago, Minister Jason Kenney was trumpeting assurances that no Canadians would lose work because of the Temporary Foreign Worker program. The events at Husky Sunrise show that, if he wasn’t lying outright, he was deeply naive to make that claim,” AFL president Gil McGowan said at a press conference today. “This just shows how broken the Temporary Foreign Worker program is – it’s lowering employment standards, it’s creating opportunities for exploitation, it’s disenfranchising workers, and it’s displacing well-trained Canadian trades people.”

Over the next months, Albertans can expect to see more cases of Canadian workers being displaced thanks to a new program that allows some employers to skip the usual process of applying for Temporary Foreign Workers. Under the Alberta Pilot for Occupation-Specific Work Permits, some employers can hire TFWs without any attempt to advertise the job locally.

“This allows employers to recruit overseas without having to consider hiring Canadians who can do the job,” McGowan said. “The government has been very secretive about this pilot program. We do not know the number of workers and their occupation utilizing this pilot project. The Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) has submitted an Access to Information request to the federal government to obtain this information, but the request as yet to be fulfilled.”

The AFL has been a leader in opposing the Temporary Foreign Worker program, conducting extensive research into the use and abuse of the guest worker program. Through a series of government documents the AFL obtained, the organization has helped pressure the Harper Government into making changes to the program, including suspending the fast-track Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) stream.

“The minister seems oblivious to the problems that the program is causing,” McGowan said. “He announced yesterday that the government might resume the ALMO stream, despite the extensive abuse of that program the last time it was implemented. I’m actually shocked that they can’t learn from their mistakes.”

AFL Backgrounder: Husky Sunrise and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]

2013 Backgrounder_Husky Sunrise and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

AFL News Release: Oct 10 Temporary Foreign Worker Program Displacing Canadians

Alberta Federation of Labour president will comment on misuse of Temporary Foreign Worker program at Husky Sunrise project. Almost 300 Canadians are no longer working at the project near Fort McMurray because they’ve been replaced by a firm that makes extensive use of the Temporary Foreign Worker program.

Time:                         1:30 p.m., Thursday, October 10

Place:                        River Valley Room, Chateau Lacombe Hotel (10111 Bellamy Hill, Edmonton)

Who:                          Gil McGowan, president, Alberta Federation of Labour

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olav Rokne, AFL Communications Director at 780-289-6528 (cell) or via email [email protected].

Superstore will face boycott if workers are not offered fair deal

Edmonton – Union leaders representing more than 250,000 Alberta workers urged Loblaws CEO Galen Weston Jr. to present a reasonable offer to the 8,500 UFCW workers at the province's Superstores.

In letters sent to Mr. Weston, the presidents of the Alberta Federation of Labour, United Nurses of Alberta, Health Sciences Association of Alberta, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, UNIFOR and the Canadian Union of Public Employees, stated unequivocally their support for the members of United Food and Commercial Workers.

"In the event of a strike, we will communicate our concerns about your company's labour relations practices to our members and actively encourage them to not shop at Superstore until a fair agreement has been reached," AFL president Gil McGowan said. "In an economy as vibrant as Alberta's, there is simply no excuse to shortchange the employees whose efforts make your business thrive."

At a press availability at 1:30 p.m. today outside the Superstore at 4821 Calgary Trail N.W., Edmonton, representatives of the largest unions in the province noted that the Loblaws Corporation has enjoyed a banner year, has spent billions on growing their retail empire, but are being stingy with staff.

"My guess is that you and your senior management team have concluded that, order to maintain your market share and afford moves like your recent purchase of the Shoppers chain, you have no choice but to engage in the race to the bottom being led by companies like Walmart," McGowan noted.

After negotiations between United Food and Commercial Workers locals in Alberta and Saskatchewan reached an impasse in September, more than 8,500 members of the union voted 97 per cent to approve strike action. The members were near unanimous in their rejection of Loblaws' last offer, which involved wage cuts of up to 40 per cent, on top of reductions in hours.

If there is no agreement reached by midnight on Oct. 6, workers at Superstores all over the prairie provinces will walk out.

"We understand that the retail market is competitive, but it is also profitable – especially here in booming Alberta," McGowan said. "Instead of joining the pack in a race to the bottom, you can stand out from the pack by being a good employer and a better corporate citizen."

The press conference was attended by Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan, representing 160.000 workers; Alberta Union of Provincial Employees president Guy Smith, representing 83,000 workers; United Nurses of Alberta vice president Jane Sustrik, representing 23,000 workers; Health Sciences Association of Alberta president Elisabeth Ballermann, representing 24,000 workers; and Canadian Union of Public Employees president Marle Roberts, representing 30,000 workers.

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AFL Letter to Galen Weston

CUPE letter to Galen Weston

HSAA letter to Galen Weston

UNA letter to Galen Weston

UNIFOR letter to Galen Weston

AUPE letter to Galen Weston

MEDIA CONTACT:

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]

Federation of Labour supports East-West connections that keep refining and upgrading jobs in Canada

Edmonton – The Alberta Federation of Labour President submitted final arguments to the National Energy Board in favour of the Enbridge Line 9 Project today.

AFL president Gil McGowan said he supports Line 9 because it keeps value-added jobs in Canada, and is good for the people of Alberta and the people of Quebec. Line 9 will expand and reverse the flow of Line 9 and 9B, connecting the Synthetic Crude Oil coming from Alberta's upgraders to refineries in Quebec.

"Line 9 connects Alberta's upgraders, and all the good-paying jobs that go with them, to refineries in Quebec, where thousands of good jobs are also at stake. It provides a market for synthetic crude, and keeps value-added jobs in both our provinces," McGowan said. "Line 9 allows Quebec refineries to stop importing higher-cost crude from Angola, Nigeria, and Algeria, and instead allows them to buy Alberta's upgraded products, which enhances Canadian energy security."

The AFL is a frequent intervener in National Energy Board pipeline proceedings. The Federation has intervened against Keystone, Keystone XL, Southern Lights, Alberta Clipper, and Northern Gateway, on the grounds that these pipelines ship raw bitumen, and therefore value-added jobs, down the pipeline to the United States or China. This is the first time the Federation has intervened in favour of a pipeline project at the National Energy Board.

The AFL represents 160,000 Alberta workers, including 25,000 in energy and energy-related construction.

Contact the AFL for a copy its Final Written Argument, filed on October 3.

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MEDIA CONTACT:

Gil McGowan, President at 780.218.9888

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]