CANADIAN LABOUR:

REHIRE RADIO EMPLOYEES AT RYERSON:

The following solidarity appeal is from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).

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CUPE 1281 fights firings at CKLN-FM:
Management at CKLN-FM, Ryerson University’s student supported campus/community radio station has fired two CUPE 1281 members.

The small group of paid staff at the mostly volunteer station voted to join CUPE 1281 almost a year ago.

Well into the negotiation process, management argued that news director Kirstin Schwartz and music director Tien Providence should not be in the bargaining unit – a case usually made when a bargaining unit certifies and one that the employer could still try to make today at the Canada Industrial Relations Board.

Management’s solution? Forget the Board; fire the workers. Schwartz, who had just returned to work from parental leave, and Providence were terminated in a move that CUPE 1281 calls clearly illegal.

You can help Schwartz and Providence be re-instated in their jobs by sending a message to CKLN management.

THE LETTER:

I am appalled at the action CKLN management has taken to terminate the employment of two long-time staff members, including one who had just returned to work from parental leave.
I want to be able to support campus/community radio, but your actions have made that impossible.

If you believe Kirstin Schwartz and Tien Providence should not be members of your staff union, CUPE 1281, there is a place to make that argument: the Canada Industrial Relations Board. Firing is illegal, unjust and immoral.

Please re-instate Kirstin Schwartz and Tien Providence immediately, so I can consider re-instating my support for CKLN.