Thunder Bay, ON – When he assumed the office of IAM Canadian General Vice President, Stan Pickthall made a commitment to meet as many IAM members as possible in a given year. He wanted to go outside the staff meetings, conferences and conventions to meet members in their workplace. Since May of 2016, Pickthall, usually accompanied by IAM Canadian Chief of Staff Gord Falconer, has conducted 50 site visits each year. “There’s a big difference between a quick chat at a conference and a face-to-face meeting where the member works,” says Pickthall. “There’s no doubt they’re more relaxed on their turf and I get the added bonus of seeing what they do. Our members are quite proud of their work and for me, it’s something new every time I visit a workplace. This was only a brief visit, but IAM Local Lodge 1120 Directing Business Representative Pete Topetto took the time to take Gord on tours of six of the seven auto dealerships we represent in the Lakehead city and it was very informative.”
The hair may have some grey compared to the calendar picture when Syd Godfrey was a rookie mechanic at Dominion Motors 29 years ago, but he still loves his job and he’s proud to be a Machinist member.
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