LABOUR COUNCIL DELEGATES MEETING
Thursday, January 8, 7:30 p.m. OFL Building, 15 Gervais Dr. Special Film Screening 7pm Rana Plaza: Victims of Fashion - with film-maker Fuad Chowdhury |
Ready for the New Year - the latest Labour Action features a report card on the Conservative government (it's not all F's!) and great articles on schools, pensions, 2104 elections, and generous giving.
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SEND A MESSAGE TO THE PREMIER
The Honourable Kathleen Wynne
[email protected]
Dear Premier Wynne,
I am tired of hearing politicians talk about financial budget pressures when their governments have squandered billions of dollars in public revenues through corporate tax cuts. There is no reason that the tax rates for corporations cannot be restored to the level they were when the Liberal government was first elected in 1993.
Corporate Canada is sitting on over $600 billion in “dead money” they refuse to invest in new jobs. Please include an increase in the corporate tax rate in your 2015 provincial budget.
Sincerely, Name & Address
The Honourable Kathleen Wynne
[email protected]
Dear Premier Wynne,
I am tired of hearing politicians talk about financial budget pressures when their governments have squandered billions of dollars in public revenues through corporate tax cuts. There is no reason that the tax rates for corporations cannot be restored to the level they were when the Liberal government was first elected in 1993.
Corporate Canada is sitting on over $600 billion in “dead money” they refuse to invest in new jobs. Please include an increase in the corporate tax rate in your 2015 provincial budget.
Sincerely, Name & Address
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Election 2015
The federal Conservatives have governed Canada for ten years and it's time for a change. Under Stephen Harper every aspect of Canadian politics has been adjusted to serve the Conservative Party and the key sections of capital that it answers to - oil + gas, mining, agribusiness and finance. The Harper regime has exercised a ruthless approach to any opposition in civil society or in Parliament - slashing funding, smearing reputations, imposing gag orders, and habitually abusing legislative power time.
Labour Council has prepared a report card on the Conservative record, and it's not all F's! Download and circulate to anyone who cares about Canada's future.
The federal Conservatives have governed Canada for ten years and it's time for a change. Under Stephen Harper every aspect of Canadian politics has been adjusted to serve the Conservative Party and the key sections of capital that it answers to - oil + gas, mining, agribusiness and finance. The Harper regime has exercised a ruthless approach to any opposition in civil society or in Parliament - slashing funding, smearing reputations, imposing gag orders, and habitually abusing legislative power time.
Labour Council has prepared a report card on the Conservative record, and it's not all F's! Download and circulate to anyone who cares about Canada's future.
HOLIDAY READING – THE WORKERS' CITY by Craig Heron
There's a large framed print of a painting hanging at the entrance to the Bloor/Yonge subway station. I suspect few of the thousands of commuters who pass through that space every day ever notice it. It was painted in 1954 by a commercial artist named Edwin McCormick in honour of the men who built Toronto's first subway. This piece of public art commemorating workers is relatively rare in Toronto. There is a monument to construction workers in the Cloud Gardens Park between Richmond and Temperance streets, a memorial to workers who died on the job in Simcoe Park above Front St, a stunning monument to Chinese labourers near the Rogers Centre, and a few more. On the whole, however, this is a city that has not kept alive at the public level much of the memory of the millions of working people who over the years made a living working for wages or kept house for those who did. The record of the people who built the city, made its many products, and provided its services is almost silent. This talk is about the city that workers made and worked and lived in, “The Workers’ City.” Continue reading
There's a large framed print of a painting hanging at the entrance to the Bloor/Yonge subway station. I suspect few of the thousands of commuters who pass through that space every day ever notice it. It was painted in 1954 by a commercial artist named Edwin McCormick in honour of the men who built Toronto's first subway. This piece of public art commemorating workers is relatively rare in Toronto. There is a monument to construction workers in the Cloud Gardens Park between Richmond and Temperance streets, a memorial to workers who died on the job in Simcoe Park above Front St, a stunning monument to Chinese labourers near the Rogers Centre, and a few more. On the whole, however, this is a city that has not kept alive at the public level much of the memory of the millions of working people who over the years made a living working for wages or kept house for those who did. The record of the people who built the city, made its many products, and provided its services is almost silent. This talk is about the city that workers made and worked and lived in, “The Workers’ City.” Continue reading

THE WORK OF WINNING HUMAN RIGHTS IS NEVER OVER
December 10th is the date of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations sixty-six years ago. That important act was the result of many years of struggle against racism and colonialism, combined with the horrors of the Holocaust that were still fresh in the memories of humankind after the Second World War.
Today's headlines remind us that the work of winning human rights is never over. From the incidents in Ferguson Missouri and New York City, to the rampant evidence of sexual harassment and violence against women, we are reeling with the knowledge that so much more needs to be done. There is welcome news at the same time – the efforts of the Canadian Olympic Committee to support gay and lesbian athletes are to be applauded, particularly in the aftermath of Sochi. Read the Toronto Star Op-Ed by Gary Pieters and John Cartwright tinyurl.com/lq68l5f
December 10th is the date of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations sixty-six years ago. That important act was the result of many years of struggle against racism and colonialism, combined with the horrors of the Holocaust that were still fresh in the memories of humankind after the Second World War.
Today's headlines remind us that the work of winning human rights is never over. From the incidents in Ferguson Missouri and New York City, to the rampant evidence of sexual harassment and violence against women, we are reeling with the knowledge that so much more needs to be done. There is welcome news at the same time – the efforts of the Canadian Olympic Committee to support gay and lesbian athletes are to be applauded, particularly in the aftermath of Sochi. Read the Toronto Star Op-Ed by Gary Pieters and John Cartwright tinyurl.com/lq68l5f
“Bottles Not Cans”: Steelworkers and supporters hit the beer stores last Saturday to support 120 workers at Crown Metal Packaging in Toronto have been on strike for over 15 months. Instead of negotiating a fair deal with the strikers, the company is using scab labour to produce cans of Molson, Coors, Labatt, Budweiser and many other beers. Instead of buying beer in scab cans, buy bottles instead! Please circulate the leaflet here.
Buy Books Here If you are holiday shopping for a good book, support progressive independent bookstores! In Toronto you can check out www.adifferentbooklist.com at 764 Bathurst Street south of Bloor, or www.anotherstory.ca at 315 Roncesvalles Ave. For a great gift, consider Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything - required reading for anyone who cares about the future of humankind. You'll be intrigued with the parallel she draws with a world-changing struggle from long ago. Lawrence Hill’s Book of Negroes was a best-seller, while his latest book Any Known Blood touches on his mother’s work with the Toronto Labour Committee on Human Rights in the 1950’s.
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ATU TRANSIT REPORT On November 10th ATU 113 released a ground-breaking report on how the TTC can better serve transit riders. As workers who operate and maintain the TTC (and know its workings best), ATU members are adding their voice to the ever-growing transit discussion. Along with supporting a low-income fare pass and time-based transfers, the report is full of sound recommendations for the new mayor-elect and City Council about the future of Toronto transit. Canada remains the only developed country without a National Transit Strategy. More specifically, the TTC has the lowest government subsidy in North America, and remains crucially underfunded with zero dollars from the federal and provincial governments for operational funding. For the report go to www.torontotransitfuture.ca
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ATU TRANSIT REPORT On November 10th ATU 113 released a ground-breaking report on how the TTC can better serve transit riders. As workers who operate and maintain the TTC (and know its workings best), ATU members are adding their voice to the ever-growing transit discussion. Along with supporting a low-income fare pass and time-based transfers, the report is full of sound recommendations for the new mayor-elect and City Council about the future of Toronto transit. Canada remains the only developed country without a National Transit Strategy. More specifically, the TTC has the lowest government subsidy in North America, and remains crucially underfunded with zero dollars from the federal and provincial governments for operational funding. For the report go to www.torontotransitfuture.ca
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STRENGTHENING
OUR UNIONS THROUGH EQUITY On
September 6th, Labour Council released its latest contribution to
the equity work in our movement. Entitled “A Leader’s Guide to
Strengthen Unions: Moving Beyond Diversity… Towards Inclusion and Equity”
the document is designed to be a tool for activists and leaders who want to
build more powerful unions in greater Toronto, and across Canada. It is written
by Jojo Geronimo, veteran labour educator former Executive Director of the
Labour Education Centre.
Nearly two decades ago, the Canadian labour movement took a hard look at the reality of racial discrimination in our workplaces, our society, and in our unions. The Canadian Labour Congress National Anti-Racism Task Force presented a disturbing but insightful report that called on the labour movement to take this issue seriously. It’s framework for action touched on every aspect of how we operate, as well as crucial issues of racism in broader society. Today, the makeup of the workforce is rapidly evolving. In greater Toronto, half of us were born outside Canada, and half of us are people of colour. |
This guide has been developed to help unions embrace change in a way that is effective and authentic. It is not meant to be an easy task. It will take determination and an openness to change from all levels of leadership. Together we can craft a more equitable and powerful labour movement for the 21st century – and this Guide can help make some of that happen.
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POSTAL WORKERS FIGHT BACK! Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow…
The motto of letter carriers rang true as activists from the Canadian Union of
Postal Workers (CUPW) went out last rainy Saturday to knock on doors in
Etobicoke and Scarborough. They got a great response from residents angry about
the planned elimination of personal door-to-door mail delivery. The goal of
this action is to place responsibility for the loss of door-to-door delivery squarely
on the sitting Conservative MPs in each area.
The canvassing action was combined with full-page ads in the Scarborough Mirror and Etobicoke Guardian, featuring pictures of the Conservative Members of Parliament and their contact information.
The canvassing action was combined with full-page ads in the Scarborough Mirror and Etobicoke Guardian, featuring pictures of the Conservative Members of Parliament and their contact information.
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on Prezi |
UNIONS 101
People are often asking if there is a simple presentation for schools, public forums or new member classes that answers the question “What are unions about?” Labour Council has a short digital “Prezi” presentation that combines graphics, pictures and video clips, and is suitable for all uses. Check it out, click here. |
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