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"Unions are about fairness: workplace fairness; economic fairness; opportunity fairness; political fairness; and democratic fairness. Unions promote fairness, not just for their members, but for all Canadians.” - James Clancy, NUPGE President.
Toronto (28 March 2013) – An international conference on labour rights issues has come to a successful conclusion. It succeeded in providing a solid base of knowledge about the critical role that labour and unions play in reducing income inequality, advancing democracy, and promoting the well-being of all Canadians.
The conference, "Labour Rights and Their Impact on Democracy, Economic Equality and Social Justice", was organized by the Canadian Foundation for Labour Rights (CFLR) and sponsored by the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE), the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW Canada) and the Canadian Teachers' Federation (CTF).
Participants heard from a number of enthusiastic speakers on the final day and left the conference feeling energized and committed to building a broad-based progressive coalition in support of the shared values of Canadians and the labour movement.
Panel #1 Who owns Charter values? How the labour movement can use Charter values as part of a popular mobilization strategy
Eric Tucker, Professor of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School
“It’s not enough for unions to focus on immediate challenges in front of them. Those challenges are important. But it’s critical that unions connect those challenges to a larger vision of the kind of society they want and the fundamental values they want entrenched in the larger society. When unions campaign to change the larger cultural context it will become easier to meet the immediate specific challenges they face.”
Fay Faraday, Founder of Faraday Law and inaugural McMurtry Visiting Fellow at Osgoode Hall Law School
“The Charter is meant to be a living document. Should its meaning be handed over solely to the courts for definition? I think the answer is no. The Charter is too important to leave its meaning up to the courts. The Charter belongs to Canadians and they should control the meaning of the Charter and fundamental freedoms and values.”
Panel #2 Reframing the debate: Knowledge, truth and values
James Clancy, National President, National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE)
“We need to boldly assert a values-based narrative about the critical role unions play in making life better for all Canadians. The key value of that narrative is fairness. At their core, unions are about fairness: workplace fairness; economic fairness; opportunity fairness; political fairness; and democratic fairness. Unions promote fairness, not just for their members, but for all Canadians.”
Anouk Collet, National Representative, UFCW Canada
“The erosion of labour rights should be troublesome for all Canadians because declining unionization rates have been accompanied by a rise in income inequality over the same period.
It’s critical that we reverse this damaging trend. The more labour rights are under attack in Canada the harder it will be to reduce income inequality. That’s why it’s important for all of us, regardless of whether we are trade unionists or not, to focus on labour rights as human rights.”
Panel #3 Building a broad-based popular movement based on the assertion that ‘Unions Matter’ to all Canadians
Wayne Hanley, National President, UFCW Canada
“Canadians want to build a fairer and more equitable and prosperous country. A vibrant and diverse union movement is critical to making this a reality and laying a strong foundation for the next generation. Unions must ramp up their efforts to engage and mobilize their members and non-union workers around shared values and build a broad-based progressive coalition.”
Elisabeth Ballermann, President, Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA/NUPGE)
“It’s essential that we go member-to-member, workplace-to-workplace, community-to-community and start conversations about why unions matter to all Canadians. That’s how we will tackle growing unfairness in Canada and improve the quality of life of all Canadians.”
Guest Speaker: Why unions matter
Ken Georgetti, President, Canadian Labour Congress
"Fairness is a basic Canadian value and we will promote it in every corner of our country. The gains that union members make at the bargaining table spill over into creating healthier and more prosperous communities for everyone. Union members can be good ambassadors in a campaign for greater fairness for all Canadians. We are going to have conversations with our members in the workplace and on the shop floor. We will also ask them to reach out to their families, friends and neighbours in the fight for fairness."
More information:
Canadian Foundation for Labour Rights
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE