United Way Back to School Donation Drive 2016
Canadian Red Cross: Alberta Wildfires Relief Effort
CUPE Local 543 is encouraging all Members and Windsor-Essex Residents to donate to the Red Cross Fort McMurray Evacuee Relief Effort.
Please see the CBC (matching donations) link and Red Cross article below.
Please note that the Government of Canada has agreed to match individual donations in aid of Fort McMurray residents:
CBC News Story: Fort McMurray donations to the Red Cross to be matched by Ottawa, Trudeau says
The Red Cross responds to Alberta fires
The Canadian Red Cross has mobilized to help the people affected by wildfires in Alberta. Massive wildfires have triggered the largest fire-related evacuation in Alberta’s history, and due to high temperatures and wind the situation has the potential to become more serious. 12 communities, including Fort McMurray, are currently impacted by the fires, which have damaged and destroyed homes and property.
When people evacuated their communities, they left not knowing if they would have homes to return to. Evacuated residents find themselves in need of a place to stay, food, water and basic supplies.
The Red Cross has a network of highly-trained volunteers who are there to help, and we’re actively scaling up our operations in response to the fires. We are supporting registration, family re-unification, assisting in shelters in Edmonton and Lac La Biche, as well as providing accommodation and basic necessities like food and water. Specially-trained volunteers are providing care and comfort to those who have suffered emotional trauma. Additional personnel are on standby and ready if needed.
We will be working alongside those affected not just today, but for the weeks and months and even years that follow as they recover.
Canadians looking to help can make a donation to the Alberta Fires Appeal, which will help us deliver assistance to those who need it.
If you have been evacuated, or are looking for family members who have been evacuated, register online or by calling 1-888-350-6070. Registering helps response organizations, like the Red Cross, provide support as well as helps reconnect family members following the evacuation.
Looking for more information about wildfire safety? Learn how you can be prepared for forest fire emergencies.
http://www.redcross.ca/blog/2016/5/the-red-cross-responds-to-alberta-fires
Day of Mourning 2016 Statement from the OFL
Workplace Safety Must be Canada’s Bottom LineOFL Statement on National Day of Mourning for Workers Killed or Injured on the Job – April 28, 2016Thursday, April 28 is the labour movement’s most solemn day. Thousands of workers, friends and families of fallen workers will gather at ceremonies across Ontario to recognize the National Day of Mourning for Workers Killed or Injured on the Job. As we mourn for the dead, the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) will continue to fight for the living. The OFL’s six-year-long campaign, “Kill a Worker, Go to Jail,” made history earlier this year, when Metron Construction Project Manager, Vadim Kazenelson, received Ontario’s first prison sentence for workplace negligence causing the deaths of four workers and the serious injury of a fifth. The sentence was the first of its kind in Ontario, since the Criminal Code of Canada was amended in response to the 1992 Westray Mine Disaster, to allow for the criminal conviction of negligent employers. “Workers have been fighting for health and safety rights for centuries but we know that we won’t stop the carnage in the workplace unless employers come to realize that there will be serious personal consequences if they put workers’ lives in the line of danger,” said OFL President Chris Buckley. “No prison term or financial penalty can bring back the workers who died or undo the pain felt by their families, but we hope the threat of jail time will send a shiver down the spine of every employer and make them see accident prevention as an occupational priority.” According to the latest statistics from Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), 226 workers reportedly lost their lives in 2015 due to workplace tragedies or occupational disease. Roughly 230,000 Ontario workers are injured or made sick at work every year, thousands of others pass away years later due to resulting health complications, and still other cases, undoubtedly, go unreported or unacknowledged. It amounts to a workplace epidemic that has needlessly cost tens of thousands of lives and impacted literally millions of working families over the years. This year, the OFL has joined the Canadian Labour Congress in calling for a total ban on asbestos. Every year, 145,000 Canadian workers are exposed to asbestos in their workplace and, tragically, over 2,000 are still being diagnosed with often fatal diseases, like mesothelioma and lung cancer. These startling figures have earned asbestos a reputation as the number one workplace killer, yet after banning the mining and export of asbestos in 2011, Canada continues to allow the importation of products containing asbestos. “There is absolutely no justifiable reason to delay a full ban on asbestos. Indeed, Canadian lives are depending on it,” said Buckley. “It is time to start listening to the resounding scientific evidence, it is time to start listening to the tragic stories of the families of fallen workers, and it is time to make workplace health and safety a national priority.” OFL Officers and staff will attend Day of Mourning Ceremonies in cities and towns across Ontario. The province’s labour unions, regional labour councils, injured workers’ groups, family members and allies will come together demand action – from our courts and from our governments – to ensure that every employee who heads off to work will return home safely to their family at the end of a workday. “Canada has the opportunity to show the world we care about stopping the tragedy of asbestos and protecting the lives of every worker. We believe the National Day of Mourning on April 28 offers a tremendous opportunity for meaningful action to make workplace health and safety the bottom line for every employer,” said Buckley. For a list of Day of Mourning events across Ontario, visit: http://canadianlabour.ca/event-calendar/all-events/ontario-day-mourning-events-2016 The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) represents 54 unions and one million workers in Ontario. For information, visit www.OFL.ca and follow the OFL on Facebook and Twitter: @OFLabour. |
CUPE 543 Elections 2016
| CUPE 543 Elections 2016 | |||
| Position | Nominated | Voting Date | |
| President | VANDER VOORT, Mark | Acclaimed | |
| 1st Vice-President | SIMONETTI, Jessie | Acclaimed | |
| 2nd Vice-President | FERRIGAN, Chris | 18-May-2016 | |
| HANNON, Patrick | 18-May-2016 | ||
| Recording-Secretary | MCCULLOUGH MALBOEUF, Mary Lou | Acclaimed | |
| Treasurer | PETTEN, David | 18-May-2016 | |
| VIRGA, Mike | 18-May-2016 | ||
| Sergeant-At-Arms | BOULIANE, Kim | 18-May-2016 | |
| FERRIGAN, Chris | 18-May-2016 | ||
| MAILLET, Janice | 18-May-2016 | ||
| PARENT, Jason | 18-May-2016 | ||
| Chief Steward | CHARETTE, Ed | 18-May-2016 | |
| MAILLET, Janice | 18-May-2016 | ||
| PARENT, Jason | 18-May-2016 | ||
| Exec. Member-At-Large (3 positions) | |||
| BOULIANE, Kim | 18-May-2016 | ||
| DOAN, Carol | 18-May-2016 | ||
| FERRIGAN, Chris | 18-May-2016 | ||
| HANNON, Patrick | 18-May-2016 | ||
| MAILLET, Janice | 18-May-2016 | ||
| SMITH, Jim | 18-May-2016 | ||
| VIRGA, Mike | 18-May-2016 | ||
| WEAVER, Diane | 18-May-2016 | ||
| WILSON, Tonya | 18-May-2016 | ||
PRESS RELEASE: City of Windsor Caretaker Issue
City of Windsor makes a sham of local democracy by reintroducing an already defeated motion, says CUPE
WINDSOR, ON – The City of Windsor is about to witness the dismantling of local democracy if key elected council officials get their way and reintroduce a motion already defeated in November seeking to contract out caretaking services at a variety of city operated and maintained facilities, warned the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), representing municipal workers at the City of Windsor.
“What we have here is a repackaged motion that was already discussed in a public forum with consultation and input from the community in November – Council listened to the community, voted to defeat the motion to outsource public services, and that decision needs to be respected,” said Mark Vander Voort, president of CUPE 543, representing the ‘inside’ municipal workers. “Less than four months from the defeated vote, a similar motion, dressed up in sheep’s clothing, is being reintroduced to council. This is a sham and shame on those on council who are plotting behind closed doors to bring this back to the floor of the city chamber.”
The original motion to contract out caretaking services was defeated on November 16, 2015, after a public outcry about the importance of keeping public services in-house. The community and the workers rallied to, not only keep services in-house, but highlighted the need for the city to provide quality jobs to deliver quality public services. But less than four months after the vote, a ‘repackaged’ motion, ‘tailored’ to shift votes to get this ‘revamped’ motion approved, is being pushed on the agenda for Monday’s council meeting.
“It would appear that, not long after this vote in November, some council members may have initiated meetings behind closed doors to restart this whole process, looking for new tactics to contract out public services,” said Rob Kolody, president of CUPE 82, representing the ‘outside’ municipal workers. “We live in a democracy, Council spoke and voted to invest in public services by keeping the caretaking services in-house. One cannot just revisit an already defeated motion within weeks and repackage it and reintroduce it to council within months of a defeated decision so it can be approved. This is not how democracy works.”
“We are witnessing a new low in the City of Windsor,” said Vander Voort. “The message is loud and clear, if certain council members do not get their way, they will do whatever it takes, up to and including ignoring the values and principles of democracy, to get what they want. Windsor residents deserve to know what and who is driving this ‘back door’ approach to dismantle public services in Windsor.”
“Is this how business will be conducted in Windsor,” continued Kolody. “This is not only about contracting out caretaking services, but more important to Windsor residents, this is about how democracy is being bent by some elected councillors to suit their agenda.”
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For more information, please contact:
Mark Vander Voort, CUPE 543 President, 519-903-5515
Rob Kolody, CUPE 82 President, 226-347-2222
Lisa Marion, CUPE National Representative, 613-305-4952
James Chai, CUPE Communications, 905-739-3999
COPE491/EW
Happy Thanksgiving from CUPE 543
Wishing all our current members, retirees, their families and the community we serve a very Happy Thanksgiving. Living in a rich and diverse community within Canada’s largest province gives us reason to be thankful.
We hope that your day is spent in the comfort of your family and friends; as we count all the reasons to be thankful, please remember those in our community, country, and around the globe who are in need of an assisting hand to help foster a better tomorrow.
Second Annual Thanksgiving Giveback
CUPE 543 hosts annual Thanksgiving Giveback on Friday, October 9 –
600 families in need to receive Thanksgiving hampers
WINDSOR, ON – On Friday, October 9, City of Windsor ‘inside’ municipal and public service workers, represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 543, will give back to the Windsor community that they serve by hosting a Thanksgiving Giveback event to help 600 local families celebrate Thanksgiving with hampers filled with all the ingredients to ensure a festive Thanksgiving dinner. This is the second annual Thanksgiving Giveback that CUPE 543 is mounting in conjunction with the Windsor Essex Food Bank Association (WEFBA).
“CUPE 543 is honoured and happy to give back to the Windsor community that we so proudly serve,” said Mark Vander Voort, president of CUPE 543. “We received tremendous positive feedback and satisfaction for helping our community in last year’s Thanksgiving Giveback and we will continue to help in any way we can to ensure families in need have an opportunity to have a full Thanksgiving dinner filled with all the trimmings.”
Thanksgiving hampers will be distributed at 10 food bank locations across the City of Windsor on Friday, October 9. CUPE 543 members will be on hand to give back at five locations including the Unemployed Help Centre, Drouillard Place, The Downtown Mission, The Salvation Army and Windsor Lifeline Outreach. Each hamper will contain a turkey (for families) or a chicken (for single recipients), along with carrots, potatoes, onions, stuffing, apples, cookies and candy for families with children.
CUPE 543 members and their families worked with community agencies and volunteered to pack hampers with 500 turkeys, 100 chickens, 2,750 pounds of potatoes, 3,000 pounds of carrots, hundreds of pounds of onions and 3,000 pounds of apples, along with 600 bags of cookies and 1,000 bags of candies for each of the 600 hampers. All the produce comes from local farmers and CUPE 543 thanks local suppliers for their donations and discounts for the giveaway, including Jay Williamson (owner of Freshco at McDougall and Tecumseh, Windsor) Col-Mac Orchards in Kingsville, Craig Matte and Todd Stevenson (managers from Real Canadian Superstore in Leamington), Pier-C Produce Inc., and Produce Wholesaler in Chatham.
“Our Thanksgiving Giveback would not be possible without the support from our members and our community partners that help make Windsor a great place to live and work,” continued Vander Voort. “Our members are proud to be part of this community and, this Thanksgiving, we want to give back to the community that we are so proud to serve.”
CUPE 543 represents over 1,500 public service workers in Windsor, including the City of Windsor (inside workers), Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, ABC Day Nursery, Windsor Occupational Health Information Service, Windsor Essex Community Housing Corporation, Prism Berlie and Great Beginnings Child Centered Co-operative, providing important public services to residents in Windsor.
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For more information, please contact:
Mark Vander Voort, CUPE 543 President, 519-254-3543 (office), 519-903-5515 (cell)
Lisa Marion, CUPE National Representative, 519-966-9595
James Chai, CUPE Communications, 905-739-3999
COPE491/EW
