Machinists Push for National Pension Insurance Plan!

Friday April 17, 2009 For Immediate Release Winnipeg, MB – The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers again called on the federal government to introduce a National Pension Insurance Plan. Speaking to the Department of Finance Consultation Hearings on private pension plan reform, IAMAW Research Director Louis Erlichman said, “Canada needs a national pension insurance program to protect workers from the effects of corporate pension irresponsibility.” Winnipeg was the

Wasaya Airways workers join Machinists!

Thursday April 16, 2009 For Immediate Release Thunder Bay, ON – Workers of Wasaya Airways at Thunder Bay International Airport are the newest members of the IAMAW. The 15 members of IAMAW Local Lodge 714 comprise of Ramp agents, Passenger service agents, Cargo agents and Ground Equipment Maintenance personnel. “When these workers realized that management didn’t object to the pilots forming an association, they were quick to seek out the

Servisair tables Illegal offer to Machinist’s!

Thursday April 2, 2009 For Immediate Release Halifax, NS – Servisair tabled an illegal offer to the members of IAMAW Local Lodge 2797 the day before they were locked out. “Servisair’s best and final offer tabled March 31, 2009 included a two year wage freeze for employees currently making $9.00 an hour,” said IAMAW District 140 General Chairperson Ken Russell. “The province of Nova Scotia will introduce two increases to

Halifax Machinists locked out by Servisair!

Thursday April 2, 2009 For Immediate Release Halifax, NS – Members of IAMAW Local Lodge 2797 have formed an information picket line outside the Halifax International Airport this morning after being locked out by their employer Servisair The 80 members were locked out after contract negotiations stalled following rejection of a company demand for a two-year wage freeze. “These are the lowest paid workers in this industry anywhere in Canada,”

How 100 years of Flight Has Transformed Canada

By now you may have read a few articles written by various newspapers celebrating the 100th anniversary of powered flight in Canada and the milestones achieved since 1909. The purpose of this article is to try to capture it from workers point of view, so that you are able to see how government and corporations have shaped the aviation industry in Canada. While most of the articles fail to mention

25 YEARS - Day of Mourning

Day of Mourning, April 28, 2009 “Twenty-fifth Anniversary” This year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the National Day of Mourning as proclaimed by the Canadian Labour Congress in 1984. That date coincided with the seventieth anniversary of the first Ontario Worker’s Compensation Act approved by the government. On February 1, 1991, April 28th was subsequently enshrined by Royal Statute as, a ‘Day of Mourning for Person’s Killed or Injured in

Déclaration sur le Rejet de l'Accord de libre-échange Canada-Colombie

Déclaration des d d REJET DE L’ACCORD DE LIBRE-ÉCHANGE CANADA-COLOMBIE À tous les réseaux des Canadiennes et Canadiens engagés, Le gouvernement Harper estime normal que les paramilitaires colombiens assassinent sans vergogne des syndicalistes, des paysans et des militants. Le dossier du gouvernement Uribe en matière de droits de la personne est sans doute un des pires au monde; le gouvernement Harper fonce à pleine vapeur, avec l’appui de Michael Ignatieff,

Peter Julian's statement on the Canada-Columbia Free Trade Agreement

Peter Julian’s statement on the Canada-Columbia Free Trade Agreement Today in the House ~ Peter’s Member’s Statement Mr. Peter Julian (Burnaby—New Westminster, NDP): “Mr. Speaker, just last week Amnesty International condemned the Colombia authorities for abusing the country’s judicial system, “to undermine the legitimate work of human rights defenders”. More than a dozen human rights defenders and 46 trade unionists were killed by paramilitaries in 2008 alone. Double 2007. According