CANADIAN LABOUR BRITISH COLUMBIA:

MIGRANT WORKERS LAUNCH LAWSUIT AGAINST DENNY'S FOR WAGE THEFT:

The service industry has traditionally been both penny pinching and outright dishonest when it comes to their employees. This has been exasperated by a recent trend across the western world of hiring migrant labour, many of whom don't know their rights (and bosses are certainly not going to inform them out of the kindness of their overflowing hearts) or who are intimidated by their status in the country that they have emigrated to. One example in the USA, the workers at Chipotle, was recently mentioned on this blog. Here's another from Canada, out BC way. Seems that Filipino workers at the Denny's restaurants in that province have gotten together to demand their rights. Here's how the story is seen by the BC Federation of Labour.

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BC Fed in the News:

Fillipino Denny's workers launch class action
January 13, 2011
Fifty temporary foreign workers from the Phillipines have launched a class action lawsuit against Denny's restaurant. The workers allege Denny's has not paid them in full and say the restaurant has not reimbursed them for recruitment and processing fees they paid in order to come to Canada.

The B.C. Federation of Labour is calling for a moratorium on the recruitment of workers under the Canadian Temporary Foreign Worker Program until all alleged abuses are investigated and the program is cleaned up.

To see the CBC Television story on the class action lawsuit against Denny's click here.
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And here is how the story is seen by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).
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Migrant Workers File $10 Million Lawsuit against Denny’s in British Columbia
More than 50 Filipino migrant workers recruited to Canada under the Temporary Foreign Workers (TFW) program have filed a $10 million class action suit against Denny’s restaurants in British Columbia, charging the company did not live up to the employment contract the workers signed before they arrived from the Philippines. The suit was filed in the B.C. Supreme Court on January 7, on behalf of the Filipino migrant workers employed at Denny’s from 2006 until the present.

One of the lawyers representing the workers, Charles Gordon, alleges that “the workers came to Canada, mainly as cooks and servers, to take jobs at Denny’s Restaurants in B.C. but were required to pay approximately $6,000 each to an agency that was recruiting employees for the Defendants, and the workers have not received the hours of work, overtime pay, air travel and other conditions they were promised.”

“These workers were encouraged to come to Canada with a set of promises that have never been met – they have done their part but the Denny’s has not lived up to their end of the deal,” says Christopher Foy, another member of the legal team.

“The federal government’s Temporary Foreign Workers program continues to be a shameful treadmill that lures workers to Canada, and then leaves them defenseless and vulnerable,” says UFCW Canada National President Wayne Hanley. “The fact that the Denny’s workers have been forced to go to court is yet another blatant example of how the exploitative TFW program turns a blind eye to what happens to migrant workers once they arrive in Canada.”

CANADIAN POLITICS BURNABY BC:

'NOISE DEMO' FOR TAMIL REFUGEES BECOMES WEEKLY:

The 'noise demo' outside the detention centre in Burnaby BC where the women and children of the Tamil "boat people" are being held has now become a weekly event. Here's the update from No One Is Illegal Vancouver.

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Weekly Noise Demo - Release Detained Tamil Refugees:
Time Saturday at 1:30pm - October 9 at 3:30pm

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Location Burnaby Youth Custody Services Centre
7900 Fraser Park Dr
Burnaby, BC

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Created By No One Is Illegal - Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories

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More Info

Release Detained Tamil Refugees:
Let Them Free, Let Them Stay!

<><><><><><><><><><><><>

...Saturday Sept 25 at 1:30 pm
Sunday Oct 3 at1:30 pm
Saturday Oct 9 at 1:30 pm
Shuttles Leaving Edmonds station starting at 12:45 until 1:15

Burnaby Youth Custody Services Centre where mothers and children who
arrived aboard MV Sun Sea are being detained.

LOCATION: 7900 Fraser Park Dr, Burnaby

<><><><><><><><><><><><>

For the past 2 weeks we have gathered in front of the Burnaby Youth Custody prison where approximately 90 Tamil refugee mothers and children are being incarcerated. Supporters banged on pots and pans and blew whistles and horns to the beats of Tamil music. A large Tamil banner reading "We welcome you, we support you" was held towards the two detention units where children could be seen waving and smiling, peering through prison bars.

Join No One is Illegal-Vancouver over the next 3 weeks at the Burnaby detention facility to continue to express our love, support, and solidarity with those still being held inside and to call for the immediate release of detained Tamil asylum seekers.

* Bring noise! We want to be visible and be heard from inside so please bring pots, pans, horns, drums, noisemakers (please be aware of noises which may be triggering or traumatizing)

* TRANSPORT:

Meet at Edmonds station for rides at 12:45. Last shuttle leaves at 1:15pm. If you have a vehicle and can offer carpool, please contact us at noii-van at resist.ca or 778 885 0040.
________________
Surviving a dangerous journey, 492 Tamil refugees, including women and children, arrived in BC after fleeing war and persecution in Sri Lanka. When the ship first neared Esquimault, territories of the Songhees First Nation, it was immediately boarded by the Armed Forces, Border Services, and RCMP. The refugees are now in jails, facing endless hearings that have revealed the clear incompetency, deliberate negligence, and racism of the system.

In the context of the never-ending "War on Terror" refugees, migrants, and racialized people are increasingly being racially targeted, dehumanized as security threats, and criminalized through unprecedented police and state powers. Despite its rhetoric of 'liberating' and 'protecting' women globally and locally, the Canadian state is detaining an increasing numbers of women and children that cross these borders. In light of increasing repression and exclusionary policies and ideologies, we demand "Justice, Freedom, and Status for All!"

CANADIAN LABOUR BRITISH COLUMBIA:

CHARGES FINALLY LAID TWO YEARS LATER AFTER MUSHROOM FARM DEATHS:

No one can accuse the "justice" system of being in undue haste over this one. Two years after 3 workers were killed and two others injured at an industrial accident on a Langley BC mushroom farm charges against the companies involved and their officers have finally been laid. Here's a statement form the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) on the charges.

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Charges laid in deaths of mushroom farm workers
Two companies and four corporate officials face a total of 29 charges for failure to protect the safety of employees.

Vancouver (1 Sept. 2010) - Charges have finally been laid after two years in the deaths of three mushroom farm workers at a Langley, B.C. mushroom farm. Two others were seriously hurt.

The Crown says the two companies, A-1 Mushroom Substratum Ltd. and H.V. Truong Ltd., are charged as employers, while the four individuals are charged as either directors or officers of the companies or workplaces. They face a total of 29 charges.

The offenses all fall under the province’s worker safety laws and can result in fines of up to $619,721 and six months in jail. The charges allege failure to protect workers from “reasonably foreseeable health or safety hazards.”

The workers were overcome by gas in an enclosed space at the mushroom farm and composting plant on Sept. 5, 2008.

Donna Freeman of WorkSafe BC said at the time that it was one of the most complex investigations the agency had conducted, with more than 25 investigators on the file.

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Here's a larger overview of the case from the Vancouver Sun.

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29 charges laid in 2008 mushroom farm deaths
Three men were killed, two suffered brain damage at Langley facility
By Doug Ward, Vancouver Sun August 31, 2010

Relatives of three men who died and two others who were severely disabled in a gas leak two years ago on a Langley mushroom farm are pleased that charges have been laid in the case -- but said even the maximum penalty of six months against the farm operators wouldn't be enough to end the pain caused by the tragedy.

Family members thanked government for proceeding with charges under the Workers' Compensation Act and Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, but during brief comments at a news conference broke down as they told of the outrage and loss they continue to endure.

Tracey Phan, a 14-year-old student at Winston Churchill Secondary, said it's heartbreaking for her and her sister to visit their father Michael Phan, who suffered irreversible brain damage and remains in hospital.

'It's hard on us. We don't know if he recognizes us or not. Or if he understands what we are trying to tell him. I would like to get justice back."

A-1 Mushroom Substratum Ltd. and H.V. Troung Ltd., along with four individual employers and supervisors, could face a range of penalties, up to a maximum fine of $619,271 for a first offence and six months in jail.

For Phan and other relatives who spoke, the maximum penalties aren't enough.

"I know that the law says that under that charge six months is the maximum. But I feel that six months is not enough because people that you love will never be given back to you. And six months sitting in that jail cell will never return any of the ones who you loved or cared about."

The charges laid Monday stem from a 20-month investigation by WorkSafeBC into what went wrong at the mushroom composting facility at 23751 16th Avenue in Langley.

"We are pleased that the charges are proceeding," said WorkSafeBC spokeswoman Donna Freeman. "This was a very serious incident in which three people lost their lives, two others were severely injured and the lives of all the family members were changed forever."

Freeman described the agency's probe as the "most complex investigation in WorkSafeBC's history."

Twenty-nine counts have been filed, including several alleging that the companies and their officials failed to ensure the health and safety of its workers and failed to remedy hazardous workplace conditions.

Freeman said the investigation report included tens of thousands of pages of documentation. She said the mushroom composting operation ceased after the accident but that the mushroom farm still operates at the same location.

The probe was delayed initially because of the presence of hazardous materials in the composting operation for seven months following the tragedy, she added.

Ut Tran, Jimmy Chan and Ham Pham died in the incident. Their colleagues, Phan and Thang Tchen, suffered irreversible brain damage after breathing in hydrogen sulphide and ammonia.

In addition to A-1 Mushroom Substratum Ltd. and H.V. Truong Ltd., Ha Qua Truong, Vy Tri Truong, Van Thi Truong and Thinh Huu Doan were charged in the information sworn in Provincial Court in Surrey.

B.C. Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair said he hopes the charges will force other farm operations to fix unsafe conditions.

"Perhaps these charges will result in some other employers understanding that unsafe work conditions are not acceptable in B.C.," said Sinclair.

The B.C. Fed president said that inspections on farm sites need to be stiffened to stop fatal accidents before they happen.

"The problem is that people think they can get away with this," he added.

Labour Minister Murray Coell said he hopes the charges in the case will lead to an appropriate resolution, especially for the families of those who died.

"I understand how the families feel. I've met with them," Coell told reporters in Victoria.

"I think what we want to see is to make sure that due process and justice is done and that's best done through the courts," he added. "I think due process is now moving forward."

dward@vancouversun.com with files from Jonathan Fowlie
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/charges+laid+2008+mushroom+farm+deaths/3463095/story.html#ixzz0yKXBogSh

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And here is how the BC Federation of Labour views these charges.

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Long-awaited charges positive news in mushroom farm deaths but questions remain
September 1, 2010
The BC Federation of Labour is welcoming news that charges have finally been laid against two companies and four individuals in the deaths of three workers at a mushroom farm in Langley on September 5, 2008.

"The families of the men who were killed and injured have waited a long time for news that charges have been laid," says Jim Sinclair, President of the B.C. Federation of Labour. "This is a step in the right direction and sends a message to employers that they face potential jail time if they fail to provide safe workplaces."

The owners of the mushroom farm are facing sweeping charges that include failure to provide adequate training, supervision, safety programs, identification of hazards and confined space precautions.

"We hope that justice will be done, but given the fact that three men were killed and two grievously injured, and the sweeping nature of the 29 charges laid by the Crown, we must question why criminal charges were not laid in this case," Sinclair says.

The Federation also questions the length of time it took for the WCB to complete its investigation and the laying of charges.

"It has taken two full years for charges to be laid and it is entirely possible that this case will not go to court for many more months. This is far too long in a situation where lives have been lost and other farmworkers lives could be at risk. These investigations and prosecutions need to be completed faster in order to make workplaces safer."

The Federation is also calling for the release of the WCB investigation report into the mushroom farm incident. The WCB is withholding the report until the prosecution is complete.

"The families of the men killed and injured at this mushroom farm are entitled to see the WCB report. They should not have to wait months or years to find out what happened that day," Sinclair says.

"These charges attest to the fact that too many farmworkers face unsafe working conditions every day in our province," Sinclair added. "We need a full public inquiry into working conditions in the agricultural sector to ensure that farmworkers aren't treated like second class citizens."

For more information: Evan Stewart Director of Communications (604) 430-1421.

CANADIAN POLITICS BRITISH COLUMBIA:

DEMAND FREE VOTE OVER HST:

Last week the British Columbia Supreme Court declared that the anti-HST petition initiative was legal and therefore binding. CUPE BC is demanding that the BC legislature be recalled and a free vote held on this outrageous tax grab. Here's the story from their website.

HSTHSTHSTHST

Recall BC Legislature now, put HST before MLAs for free vote says CUPE BC
Aug 20, 2010 03:06 PM

Burnaby, BC —Today’s ruling by BC Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman that the anti-HST initiative petition and accompanying legislation are legal clears the way for Premier Gordon Campbell and the BC Liberal government to respect the wishes of British Columbians and recall the Legislature for a free vote on the HST, says CUPE BC President Barry O’Neill.

“This campaign was able to do what almost no one thought possible and the chief justice recognized the magnitude of that accomplishment in his ruling,” said O’Neill. “Premier Campbell now needs to do the right thing - respect the clear will of British Columbians and allow MLAs from all parties to actually vote on whether the HST is the right thing to do. And if the Liberals have the courage of their convictions, then they should make it a free vote so that British Columbians can see which elected officials truly have their interests at heart."

“In the meantime, if Mr. Campbell won’t respect the democratic will of the people, the interim Chief Electoral Officer no longer has any legal impediment to forward the initiative to the legislative committee. He should do so immediately, and the committee should meet at the earliest possible opportunity to take the next steps: either putting the legislation before MLAs for debate or a province-wide referendum,” said O’Neill.

O’Neill encouraged CUPE BC members and other opponents of the HST to write to their BC Liberal MLA to demand the government recall the legislature to debate the HST.


For more information, contact:

Barry O’Neill
CUPE BC president
cell: (604) 340-6768

Clay Suddaby
CUPE Communications
Cell: (604) 313-1138

CANADIAN LABOUR BRITISH COLUMBIA:

PUBLIC INQUIRY ON SILVICULTURE LABOUR ABUSES:

As reported earlier on this blog the BC Federation of Labour is calling for a public inquiry on the silviculture (tree planting) industry in BC. This is in the wake of the revelation of recent abuses amounting to slave labour at a camp run by Khaira Enterprises Inc.. In Molly's opinion this inquiry is long overdue, and we can be certain that no participating paties will escape unscathed. As reported earlier on this blog Khaira has been operating in BC for over 10 years under both the present administration and the previous NDP government. It is also noteworthy that the board presumably overseeing this industry has at least "nominal" union representation. Here's the story from the BC Fed. >>>

BCBCBCBCBC
Public Inquiry needed to clean up silviculture abuses
August 20, 2010
The BC Federation of Labour is calling on the provincial government to launch a public inquiry into silviculture regulations and enforcement in the province. An investigation by the Federation has uncovered a patchwork of regulations and the absence of any real enforcement.

The call for an inquiry follows shocking details on conditions at a Khaira Enterprises work camp near Golden in July and the death of a Khaira worker in Revelstoke in June.

"We have talked with former Khaira workers, government agencies and silviculture contractors," says Jim Sinclair, President of the B.C. Federation of Labour. "As more information emerges, it is clear we have multiple and systemic problems with the regulation of silviculture contractors in BC and with the enforcement of those regulations."

The Federation has learned that Khaira Enterprises was the successful bidder on a BC Timber Sales tree planting contract on Texada Island in March of this year. The Khaira bid was 30 percent lower than the next lowest bid and 37 percent lower than the average bid on the contract. The Federation has also learned that Khaira Enterprises had limited expertise in the difficult tree planting required in the contract that included helicopter, boat work and expensive logistics.

"While Khaira worked on Texada Island in March, complaints were received and the company was investigated by various agencies including BC Timber Sales, the WCB, the BC Forest Safety Council, Vancouver Coastal Health Authority and the RCMP," says Sinclair. "Instead of being shut down by these agencies, Khaira was allowed to move on to other publicly funded silviculture contracts in Kamloops, Revelstoke and Golden."

The Federation's investigation also suggests there are other silviculture contractors that ignore regulations with impunity and undercut legitimate contractors who follow the regulations.

"What we have right now is a race to the bottom where unscrupulous contractors like Khaira win contracts through unrealistic bids," says Sinclair. "The current situation is bad for silviculture workers, it is bad for our forests and it is bad for other silviculture contractors who follow the regulations. We need a public inquiry so that we can clean up this industry and stop this type of abuse."

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For more information contact: Evan Stewart, Director of Communications, B.C. Federation of Labour (604) 430-1421.

CANADIAN LABOUR BRITISH COLUMBIA:
MORE ON SLAVE LABOUR IN BC:




A couple of days ago Molly blogged on the recently discovered conditions of virtual slave labour at the Khaira tree planting camp in BC. The following sort of connects with the previous post on XL Beef about dependence on leftist parties and their good graces, but it has an additional fillip. Regular readers of this blog may notice my general 'pro-union' biases, just as they may notice my biases to rational and organized anarchism (as opposed to so much of the nuttiness of North American anarchism). At the same time I am very happy to be independent of any organization as this allows me to criticize when criticism is due. i say this because of a recent post from the National Union of Public and General Employees Union (NUPGE) blaming the recently uncovered events in BC on cutbacks in the civil service in that province. Here's a reprint from Molly's first blog on this subject:



One reason the government may be hesitant about a full inquiry is that Khaira Enterprises has been a long standing supplier of labour to the province. According to the Power Profiles site they have been in business for 10-20 years with total sales of $2,000,000. As far back as 1999 they were listed as being paid $219,288 by the province. Even more astoundingly in March 2009 they were certified as 'Safe Certified' by BC Forest Safety. The latter is a quanga set up of mainly industry and government representatives but also with a nominal union representation.

Note the following. Khaira Enterprises were getting government contracts as far back as 1999. The NDP was in power in BC until 2001, and the presumed "cuts" were far in the future. Khaira Enterprises "passed inspection" way back in the "glory days" of social democracy. Also note that in 2009 Khaira Entperprises was "safe certified" which seems to say that a civil serpent did indeed inspect said business under the authority of the board of Worksafe BC which has union representation (the USW to be exact). The so-called 'Worksafe BC' was a renaming of the old BC 'Workers' Compensation Board' in 2005, continuing the trend of trying to remove responsibility for unsafe work conditions from the enterprises onto individual workers. This is a trend that has been followed in political jurisdictions governed by left wing parties as well.

What Jacques Ellul called the "political illusion" is nowhere as bluntly visible as in situations such as this. If a system is set up such that various workers are considered to have "fewer rights" than others, and if this system is governed by a political process that allows one side (the employers) to have undue influence on its process then naturally abuses will become common. One can only wonder about how many other Khaira Enterprises there are across the country, and one is not surprised about how these things occur under social democratic governments with a maximum of government employees. Simply multiplying 'inspectors' does nothing if the inspection process is biased to begin with. That's where I, as a libertarian socialist, part company with statist socialists and why I think there is a better way to ensure workers' rights than government decree.

CANADIAN LABOUR BRITISH COLUMBIA:

SLAVE LABOUR IN BC:

This might be filed under the "and you thought your boss was bad" category. The following story from the Globe & Mail tells of the horrifying conditions that were found at a tree planting camp out in BC. Seems the owners of the camp lured new immigrants to Canada, most of them originally from Africa, out there with promises of high wages. The reality was quite different. Here's the story>>>>

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Provincially-contracted company accused of depriving workers of food and water

Deprived of food, water and toilets, 30 workers, most recent immigrants, have been rescued from a remote forestry camp in Golden, B.C. The "nightmare" has the BC Federation of Labour calling on the government to step up monitoring and enforcement of safety standards.

Workers say they endured 15-hour work days, death threats and food shortages and were forced to sleep in unventilated shipping containers
Vancouver

Published on Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2010 9:33PM EDT
Last updated on Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2010 1:45AM EDT

When Edour Nabulizi immigrated to Canada from Zimbabwe in 2005, he expected a paradise – but a summer at a B.C. forestry camp revealed a disturbing reality.

“What do you know, there’s no paradise on this Earth,” said the 16-year-old from Winnipeg, who was enticed to British Columbia by the promise of long hours and high wages.

Deprived of food, water and toilets, Mr. Nabulizi was one of 30 employees who say they were rescued from a remote forestry camp near Golden, B.C. last month. They say they endured 15-hour work days, death threats and food shortages and were forced to sleep in unventilated shipping containers.

To top it off, the employees say they have still not been fully paid for the brush-clearing work they performed.

The “nightmare” has the B.C. Federation of Labour calling on the province to investigate. “Under government money, funded by the public, these people were allowed to be treated like third-class citizens in a Third World country,” said labour federation president Jim Sinclair. “The only way to stop that is to investigate why no one enforced any of the rules.”

The labour watchdog also wants the company banned from working in B.C., back pay for employees and accurate employment records issued.

The forestry camp was run by Khaira Enterprises Ltd., a tree-planting company that held a $280,000 contract with the government’s BC Timber Sales.

“The conditions described are completely unacceptable for employees,” Minister of Labour Murray Coell said in a statement.

The ministry helped the employees leave the site, put them up in a hotel and provided them with bus tickets home on July 21. Now, WorkSafeBC and the Employment Standards Branch are investigating and will work to ensure all workers are paid, Mr. Coell said.

The Forests Ministry pulled the company’s contract on July 23 after a camp inspection revealed the conditions.

Safety in forestry camps – including safe food, water and sanitary conditions – is the responsibility of the contract holder, who must get a permit from the local health authority, according to Forests Ministry spokesman Robert Pauliszyn.

The ministry inspects the camps once they are open, and inspected the Khaira site on July 21. Khaira Enterprises did not have a health permit, according to Mr. Pauliszyn.

The company is also banned from bidding on timber contracts in the region for a year.

Khalid Bajwa, manager of the company, denied the employees’ allegations about work conditions, saying construction was not complete on the camp. Mr. Bajwa also said he has the bank records to prove he issued cheques, although he refused to provide them to The Globe and Mail.

“They know they don’t have enough hours and they can’t get EI, so they are complaining,” he said.

But Christine Barker, a single mother from Quesnel, says she has not been paid what she is owed. “We have no way of feeding our families,” she said.

Ms. Barker and her fellow employees demanded their pay on July 17, but she says the employer refused to drive them into Golden to cash pay cheques. The employees responded with a work stoppage. “We felt as though we were held as hostages,” Ms. Barker said.

They finally got out on when they started to burn garbage illegally, which was noticed by recreational fishermen and reported to the Forests Ministry.

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Now one might say that Khaira Enterprises is a particularily bad apple, and that would be true but.... Employers such as these only get away with what they do because of the connivance of government. Across Canada governments deliberately exclude immigrant farm labour from labour standards. To make matters worse they throw up all possible barriers to the one thing that could improve the lot of such workers...unionization. Should an employer be caught in an especially flagrant violation of not just labour laws but human rights the penalties are minor. In the case of Khaira Enterprises the BC government has cancelled this one contract for tree planting and suspended the company from bidding on any further government contracts for the "astoundingly long" period of one year. The malefactors are undoubtedly trembling in their boots. The BC Federation of Labour has called for the company to be shut down and for an independent investigation. The government has so far resisted both demands. Here's the story from the BC Fed>>>>>

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Federation investigation uncovers nightmare in the woods
August 10, 2010
The B.C. Federation of Labour is calling on the provincial government to shut down and launch an independent investigation into Surrey-based Khaira Enterprises following allegations of widespread abuse of silviculture workers.

A Khaira Enterprises workcamp at Bluewater Creek, 40 kilometres west of Golden, was shut down on July 21st when it was discovered by a Conservation Officer and Ministry of Forests worker who were investigating reports of illegal burning. Company owners and about 28 workers were found at the squalid camp. The workers had no money, no transportation and were unable to leave the remote site. The RCMP was also called in to investigate.

"We have met with about a dozen people who worked at Khaira Enterprises this spring and summer and the stories they tell are absolutely shocking," says Jim Sinclair. "We have pieced together a story that seems from another century."

The former Khaira employees report:
• no safe drinking water at camp, workers told to drink from a nearby creek;
• no toilet facilities at the camp;
• daily shortage of food and malnourished workers, breakfast consisted of bread, jam and peanut butter, no lunch provided;
• improper food handling, unrefrigerated chicken served most nights;
• unsafe transportation of workers in overloaded and unsafe vehicles;
• underpayment and non-payment of wages including cheques returned by banks due to insufficient funds;
• Employment Standards violations including the misrepresentation of hours worked;
• physical and verbal abuse of workers;
• workplace racism;
• death threats to workers;
• refusal of adequate medical treatment for injured workers; and
• failure to report workplace injuries to WCB.

Most of the Khaira workers are Canadian citizens or permanent residents originally from Burundi and the Republic of Congo.

"This camp was only discovered and shut down because of reports of an illegal fire during a fire ban. We need an independent investigation to explain how these working conditions were allowed to continue in British Columbia in this day and age so we can prevent it from happening again," says Sinclair. "While this investigation is underway, Khaira needs to be shut down to prevent further abuse."

"These workers are owed thousands of dollars in salary from Khaira. They need immediate financial assistance from the government in the event that Khaira's owners continue to refuse to pay the wages or if they are unable to pay them," Sinclair added.

For more information, or to arrange interviews with the workers: Evan Stewart, Director of Communications (604) 220-3095.

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Before moving on to the final story from the online magazine The Tyee Molly would like to give out the following information. Commentators on the following story have noted that this company will probably simply fold up and reopen under a different name. The company website is now "blank". I was, however, able to dig up the following contact details:

Khaira Enterprises

13011 96A Ave.

Surrey BC

V3T 5N3

(604)-951-2835

I'm sure they would appeciate hearing from you about how they treat their workers.

One reason the government may be hestitant about a full inquiry is that Khaira Enterprises has been a long standing supplier of labour to the province. According to the Power Profiles site they have been in business for 10-20 years with total sales of $2,000,000. As far back as 1999 they were listed as being paid $219,288 by the province. Even more astoundingly in March 2009 they were certified as 'Safe Certified' by BC Forest Safety. The latter is a quanga set up of mainly industry and government representatives but also with a nominal union representation.

So, unless you believe that Khaira Enterprises suddenly "went rogue" during the past year then you have to conclude that this sort of thing has been going on under the noses of the government boards that are supposed to prevent such things for over a decade. Now that might be the subject of an independent inquiry. How many other Khairas are there in BC ?

On to the Tyee story>>>>

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Call to Investigate Forest Camp 'Nightmare'
Workers tell of ordeal as BC Fed demands probe into why protections weren't enforced.

By Ryan Elias, Today, TheTyee.ca

On July 21, 28 workers from a forestry camp near Golden were rescued from brutal working conditions.

Now the B.C. Federation of Labour is calling for an investigation into how the camp's conditions managed to escape detection. Surrey-based Khaira Enterprises operated the camp under a government contract with a safety certificate through B.C. Timber Sales.

"It's clear that these people were not protected, it's clear that enforcement failed," Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair said. "Now we have to find the answer of how to fix that so that no other worker has to go through this experience."

Since the camp seems to have operated entirely under the radar, Sinclair said, there's no way to be certain how long these conditions had existed in Khaira Enterprises' camps, nor if there are others out there with similar conditions.

"It was sanctioned by the government because there was no enforcement to change it, and it went on for years," Sinclair said after the press conference. "Now we have a chance to change it and shame on us if we don't. Shame on this government and shame on British Columbia if we don't now find out how this happened and stop it from happening again."

The camp, located on Bluewater Creek about 40 kilometres from Golden, had no drinking water or toilet facilities. The workers slept in a pair of shipping containers and cleared brush seven days a week for ten to 14 hours, plus hours of travel time, with minimal breaks.

'We felt as though we were held hostage'

"We were very lucky to run into creeks in some of our blocks," said one worker, 24-year-old Christine Barker, a single mother. "It was a relief for us because we were not allowed to leave the block, the workplace. . . We'd literally sip from the creek so we'd have at least water."

Workers were given breakfasts of peanut butter and jam and dinners of unrefrigerated chicken and rice, with no meals in between. Much of the food they did receive was spoiled, said another worker, Jean-Claude Nabulizi of Winnipeg.

"The food itself was not sufficient," Nabulizi said. "But when we complained that we were not satisfied, the boss said 'there's nothing else I can do, let's call it a day, we're gonna see about tomorrow.' You can't complain that much because if they kick you out of the camp you're on your own. You've got nowhere to go."

Khaira Enterprises charged them a daily $25 camp fee. Barker said the camp's boss and supervisors lived separately and had their own cook.

"I've never heard of anything like it. To be honest with you, I've never heard these kind of outright gross working conditions anywhere. And in a camp funded by the government," Sinclair said.


Where workers slept: mats crammed into box-like quarters. Photo: BC Fed.
The workers, most of whom are citizens or permanent residents from Burundi or the Republic of Congo, say they were mostly or in some cases entirely unpaid. When they were issued partial paycheques on July 17, they were refused transportation from the site to cash them. And when they stopped working to protest their treatment, they were denied food.

"We felt as though we were being held as hostages," said Barker.

RCMP failed to connect: worker

Another worker contacted the RCMP, said Barker, but the officer he spoke to misheard him when he gave their location. The camp's on-site manager simply didn't answer his phone when the police called him, she said.

Barker walked into town to call for help, but it was a group of recreational fishers who ultimately drew the authorities to the camp. The fishers contacted the Ministry of Forests on July 21 when they saw that the camp was burning garbage, and the workers were moved out shortly thereafter.

The rescued workers were fed by a church in Golden and lodged in a local motel before traveling home on bus tickets provided by the province. Without that help, Barker said, many of them wouldn't have had the money to get home.

Ban firm from province says BC Fed

The ministry has taken away Khaira Enterprises' license for a year, but the Federation of Labour is demanding that the company be permanently banned from operating in British Columbia. Sinclair said that they are also asking for full back-pay for the workers, amounting to tens of thousands of dollars overall. He said that if Khaira Enterprises can't pay, the province should step up.

"They were working for British Columbians, in their forests, under a government contract," Sinclair said.

Khaira Enterprises has also filed records of employment that indicate that the workers quit, which Sinclair said must be amended so that the workers will qualify for unemployment insurance.

At present, most of the workers are broke. Barker said she has about $40 to her name and is looking into social assistance to help her family.

Though the Tyee attempted them to contact them, Khaira Enterprises had not returned a request for comment by press time.

ECOLOGY CANADIAN POLITICS:

OPPOSITION TO THE NORTHERN GATEWAY PIPELINE:

The oil company Enbridge has recently joined BP on the "most unwanted list" of corporate vandals because of its pipeline spill in Michigan. Not content with playing second fiddle to the head capo of corporate crime, however, Enbridge has for some time been preparing a made in Canada potential disaster to put it up with the big boys. I refer to the planned 'Northern Gateway Pipeline' from the Alberta Oil Sands to the Pacific coast in British Columbia. This project has attracted a wide variety of opposition from environmental groups to first nations whose lands will be threatened by the development. It has even been opposed by the BC Central Coast Chamber of Commerce because of the dangers that it hazards. The Pembina Institute, a Canadian think tank concerned with energy policy, has produced a very critical report outlining the problems with this project as well as with another proposed northern pipelines. Consult that website for further details.

Canadian labour, in the person of the BC section of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE BC) has also come out in opposition to Northern Gateway. Here's their statement from the website of CUPE BC.

CLCLCLCLCL
CUPE BC opposes Enbridge tanker plans to navigate off coast
BURNABY—Citing this week’s Enbridge oil spill that has threatened a Michigan river and the earlier disaster by British Petroleum that devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast, the B.C. division of the Canadian Union of Public Employees today joined First Nations and environmental groups in voicing opposition to the Enbridge Northern Gateway project.

The project would involve super tankers carrying bitumen from the Alberta tar sands and navigating the coast of British Columbia, including the fragile Great Bear Rainforest.

CUPE BC says that any potential benefits of the Enbridge plan are outweighed by the high risk of another disaster like the BP oil spill. Enbridge itself has lost credibility in recent days with a pipeline leak that resulted in more than 3 million litres of oil flowing into the Kalamazoo River in southern Michigan, coating birds and fish.

“As we’ve seen in Michigan and the Gulf coast, any kind of oil spill on our coast would have a tremendous impact on the natural environment and would impact wildlife, including salmon and the Kermode bear which is unique to the Great Bear Rainforest,” says CUPE BC diversity vice-president (aboriginal workers) Leanne Louie. “With the BP oil spill, the damage is irreversible. We can’t let that happen here.”

Penetration of the B.C. coastline by oil tankers is only part of a massive plan to build a 1,150-kilometre underground pipeline that will result in the transportation of 525,000 barrels of oil each day across Alberta and B.C. The federal government and its joint review panel are currently reviewing Enbridge’s application for the project despite the B.C. government’s 2006 promise to protect the Great Bear Rainforest.

“Enbridge claims there is minimal risk of an oil spill. In reality, it’s not if but when an oil spill will occur,” says Sheryl Burns, co-chair of the CUPE BC environment committee. “The Campbell government says it wants to fight climate change. But by supporting the Enbridge application it’s doing precisely the opposite, since the pipeline will be a major incentive for increased production of climate-damaging oil from the tar sands. We should be creating green jobs instead that will employ British Columbians while also protecting our environment.”

In a letter to Premier Gordon Campbell, CUPE BC president Barry O’Neill reminds the premier of B.C.’s promise in 2006 to protect the Great Bear Rainforest. “We urge the provincial government to oppose the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway Project altogether and honour the Great Bear Rainforest agreement it signed,” writes O’Neill.

CANADIAN LABOUR VANCOUVER:

HYATT BLOCKADE IN VANCOUVER:

Last Thursday hotel workers in Vancouver BC protested in front of the Hyatt Regency Hotel as part of a 15 city continental protest against the chain's anti-worker policies. In a real direct action as opposed to a theatrical riot the workers blocked access to the hotel during the protest. These workers are represented by Unite Here. Here's a report from the BC newspaper 'The Province'.

CLCLCLCLCL
Hundreds block downtown Vancouver corridor to protest Hyatt's treatment of workers
More than 600 hotel workers protested outside the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Vancouver during the evening rush hour Thursday as part of demonstrations in 15 North American cities against the way the global hotel giant treats its workers.

“We want to focus on the Hyatt because we feel like it serves as the starkest example of a global hotel company that managed to do well during the recession while they were cutting hours for workers, reducing shifts, leading to increased work loads for workers who are on staff,” said Michelle Travis of Unite Here Local 40, which represents about 8,000 hotel workers in B.C.

Protesting their treatment by the corporate hotel giant, workers blocked Burrard Street between West Georgia and Dunsmuir at the height of the demonstration as police redirected traffic.

Similar protests by thousands of hotel workers were held in Toronto and major U.S. cities such as New York, Chicago and San Francisco.

Unite Here, formerly known as the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union, is in contract negotiations for a new contract for about 1,600 hotel workers in Vancouver at the Hyatt, Four Seasons, Westin Bayshore and Renaissance hotels.

Understaffing and workloads have emerged as the main issues in bargaining for a new contract that expired on June 30.

jkeating@theprovince.com


Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/entertainment/Hundreds+block+downtown+Vancouver+corridor+protest+Hyatt+treatment+workers/3311375/story.html#ixzz0uial2Mye

HUMOUR:

THE WRATH OF GOVERNMENT BEATS THE WRATH OF GOD:

CANADIAN POLITICS BRITISH COLUMBIA:

BC FEDERATION OF LABOUR AGAINST THE HST:

The campaign to put the proposed 'Harmonized Sales tax' to a referendum in British Columbia continues to gather steam, and people from both the right and left are lining up to oppose this tax grab. Here's a press release from the BC Federation of Labour about their view of the tax.

BCBCBCBCBCBCBC

Commentary: BC Fed Opposes Unfair Taxes

BY: JIM SINCLAIR
PRESIDENT, B.C. FEDERATION OF LABOUR

Published in The Province newspaper May 14.

The labour movement is not against taxes.

We understand that taxes fund important public services and programs.

But the labour movement is against taxes that are dishonest and regressive. The HST is both. And, we simply cannot accept a tax that takes $2 billion from the pockets of British Columbians, many of whom are having trouble making ends meet, and gives it to corporations, many of which are already profitable.

This is the wrong tax at the wrong time for the wrong reasons.

It might be acceptable if the money generated by the HST went into healthcare, education and building a sustainable economy. But it won't. The HST will generate another tax holiday for corporations and vague promises that the rest of us will benefit one day.

The BC Liberals have fed us this line before.

They slashed income taxes by about $2 billion a year, disproportionately to the wealthy, and told us it would make us a stronger province.

The Liberals have already slashed corporate taxes by about $1.5 billion a year. They told us this would boost competitiveness, productivity and job growth.

Having cut $3.5 billion in annual provincial revenues who feels any richer?

A real estate and construction boom in some parts of the province may have created an illusion of prosperity for a while, but the BC economy is chronically underperforming most other provinces.

No matter how you measure it, the Liberal's tax slashing has failed to deliver the promised results. Employment growth has been lower than the 1990's. Investment in machinery and equipment in BC has barely increased. Even before the recession began in 2008, the forest industry had lost almost 24,000 good jobs. BC's per capita GDP is lower than it should be, our productivity is behind Alberta and Ontario, and our wages are below the Canadian average.

Tax cuts haven't worked. Instead, they have left a legacy of chronic cuts, closed schools, underfunded healthcare facilities, angry seniors, children without proper support, declining wages and growing unemployment.

The Liberals never tire of telling us that people don't like paying taxes. But that's only a half truth. People understand value for money, and most people don't mind paying fair taxes to build a strong province.

What people really don't like is being lied to and taken for fools.

Hundreds of thousands of British Columbians are voicing their anger and opposition to the HST. The Liberals should listen. They should cancel the HST and muster the courage to begin talking to British Columbians about honest and fair taxation that makes us all stronger.

CANADIAN LABOUR- BRITISH COLUMBIA:

AN OLYMPIC SWEATSHOP"

The following, from the British Columbia Federation of Labour, exposes a dark underside to the rah-rah of the Olympics commercials that are beamed across the world during the course of the Games. McDonald's is the "official restaurant" of the Olympic Games. One can only imagine an athlete trying to go through training on Ronny's food, but still the endorsements will undoubtedly pour in after the Games. Money trumps truth. What is amazing is that McDonald's is able to dodge the minimum wage laws in the Province of BC while still promoting its Simon pure brand across the airwaves. Here's the story from the BC Fed.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

“Official Restaurant” of the Olympics pays lowest wages in the country:
B.C. Federation of Labour President, Jim Sinclair is calling on the "Official Restaurant" of the Olympics to stop paying new employees less than BC's minimum wage which is already the lowest in Canada.

"I talked to several McDonald's workers in the past few days who are making less than $7 an hour and they are not impressed with the company," Sinclair said. "These workers deserve a fair wage and respect. That's the real Olympic spirit."

British Columbia has the lowest minimum wage in Canada at $8 an hour. It has been frozen for eight years. However, McDonald's in the Lower Mainland use the so-called training wage to lower starting salaries to as little as $6.35 an hour. ( Love those loopholes- Molly )The Liberal government introduced the training wage by lowering the minimum wage by 25 percent for new workers and immigrants.

"For those watching the McDonald's commercials celebrating the spirit and values of the Olympics, it might come as a surprise that one of the largest global restaurant chains pays new employees the lowest wages in Canada," Sinclair said. "The company can't just pay lip service to the spirit of the Olympics."

"As part of our Olympic sponsorship we honour the hard work and exceptional performance of our restaurant crew...." said McDonald's Senior Vice-President of Global Marketing, Dean Barrett. Sinclair called on McDonald's to honour the hard work of all its employees by eliminating the low wages.

"This company can find hundreds of millions of dollars to sponsor and promote the Olympics but they pay less than the lowest minimum wage in Canada to new workers," Sinclair said.

Sinclair called on McDonald's to pay all starting employees a minimum of $10 an hour, the wage necessary for a single person working full-time to reach the poverty line.
-30-
For more information: Evan Stewart, Director of Communications (604) 430-1421.

ANTI-MILITARISM CANADA:

HELP RODNEY WATSON:

The struggle against militarism is worldwide. Many other animal species "wage war" despite the illusions of some primitivists. The human situation, however, is unique because of our ability (inevitable!!! for those who who imagine that simply eliminating a technology by some miraculous universal religious renunciation) to form "coalitions"

will prevent war. Of course it won't ! The ability to prevent war in the future will require a very hard look at human nature, a hard look that my own "nutty comrades" of the primitivist strain obviously think is unnecessary. All that, of course, is irrelevant to our present situation where the actions of an anarchist movement are tiny to say the least. The dream world of parts of the American anarchist movement (I can only hope that the majority in a "country" that is better described as a "continent" have more common sense) is irrelevant to any political issue whatsoever. At its crudest, "if some idiot living in the" luxury" of a technological city wants to use the internet to propagandize for "the end of civilization" then "hypocrisy" is the least of the sins that can be attributed to such an idiot. The following is an internet appeal from the War Resister's International for solidarity with Rodney, who has claimed sancuaryin a Vancouver Church.

The following is a very special appeal for an American of conscience who has claimed sanctuary in a Canadian Church. I urge not just my Canadian comrades to support him. That much is obvious. I also urge our American comrades to do the best they can for this "good man".YES, such a campaign is "very liberal", but it is not from the perspective of the individual involved. this guy has come up here to escape killing Innocent people out in Iraq and Afghanistan. I don't expect my general readers to believe in political rhetoric, either that of the average leftist or my nutty comrades. Or my own for that matter. All that I would ask is that you consider the following appeal for a man who does not want to be a murderer and support him. This is plain language. Here is the story and appeal.

CPCPCPCPCPCP

USA/CANADA: War resister Rodney Watson in church sanctuary in Canada
2009 US war resisters Rodney Watson decided to seek sanctuary in a church in Vancouver, Canada, rather than face deportation to the United States to face desertion charges. Rodney Watson, who is originally from Kansas City, Kansas, enlisted in the US Army in 2004 for a three-year contract with the intentions of becoming a cook since he wanted to serve the troops in a non-combat capacity.

I n 2005, he was deployed to Iraq just north of Mosul, where he was put in charge of searching vehicles and Iraqi civilians for explosives, contraband and weapons before they entered the base. He was also expected to “keep the peace” by monitoring Iraqi civilians who worked on the base and fire his weapon at Iraqi children who approached the perimeter.

After his first tour was over, Watson was informed that he was instead being Stop-Lossed as the Army intended to have him serve beyond the date of his contractual obligation with the military. On two-week leave, he decided not to return to his base at Fort Hood, Texas, and instead fled to Vancouver, B.C. in 2006, where he lives with his Canadian born partner and their infant son.

In a September 2009 press conference, Watson - who is African-American - described his experience in Iraq, “I witnessed racism and the physical abuse from soldiers towards the civilians. On one occasion, a soldier was beating an Iraqi civilian, calling him a sand-nigger and threw his Qur’an on the ground and spit on it. The man was unarmed and he was just looking for work on the base. He posed no type of threat. He was beaten because soldiers brought their personal racist hatred to Iraq.”

He has been living in refuge at the First United Church in Vancouver, B.C., since 18 September 2009. He was welcomed with open arms and publicly declared sanctuary on Monday. Sarah Bjorknas from the Vancouver arm of the WRSC notes that Watson was issued his deportation order before his case could be resolved through the courts.

Watson wishes to remain in Canada because of his objection to the Iraq War but his passion for his infant son remains the strongest pull.

At the press conference, Watson’s voice trembled, “I don’t want to be torn away from him. I want to be there for him during his first steps, every waking moment, I want to be there. And I know if I’m deported, it is to prison and I will not be able to see any of those moments for who knows how long, for God knows how long.” If convicted of desertion as a felony charge he will not be able to cross the border to visit his son.

War Resisters' International calls for letters of support to Rodney Watson:

Rodney Watsonc

c/o First United Church Mission

320 E Hastings St

Vancouver, BC V6A 1P4

Canada
War Resisters' International calls for letters of protest to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, demanding to halt the deportation of Rodney Watson and other war resisters to the United States

.Office of the Prime Minister

80 Wellington Street

Ottawa

K1A 0A2

Fax: +1-613-941-6900

A protest email can be sent at http://wri-irg.org/node/9046.
Andreas Speck

War Resisters' International

CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-BRITISH COLUMBIA:

ANTI-OLYMPIC HAPPENINGS:

Here's the latest on what is going on out on the west coast around the opposition to the upcoming Vancouver/Whistler 2010 Winter Olympics. From thos busy little beavers at the Olympic Resistance Network....

@@@@@@@@@@

Upcoming ORN meetings and events:‏
-----------

Upcoming ORN general meetings: (Every 2nd Sunday)

Sunday, Oct. 11, 6pm @ Spartacus Books, 684 E. Hastings (The first meeting of each month includes time for new member orientation and Olympic issues background.)

Sunday, Oct. 25, 6pm and Sunday, Nov. 8, 6pm @ Spartacus Books, 684 E.Hastings

If you are interested in ORN, but unable to attend these meetings, contact olympicresistance@riseup.net for more information about future meetings and our subcommittees (including outreach, fundraising, legal defence,education, media, etc).

----------

Events in Vancouver (followed by events in Galiano Island,Seattle and Victoria):

----

Friday, Oct. 16 (and ongoing Fridays)

National Call To Action Against 2010 Olympic Sponsors: Dirty Money For Dirty Oil

In the lead up to the 2010 Winter Games, host communities have been organizing to expose the impact of the Games on indigenous communities, low-income and homeless populations, public services, and the environment.

While we continue to expose the impact of the Games themselves, anti-Olympic organizers in Vancouver want to make sure that the spotlight is directed at the social and environmental crimes of the corporate sponsors as well.

Some of the sponsors of the 2010 Games are among the most notorious corporate criminals, having devastated communities and environments around the world. These include General Electric, the world’s largest corporation, war profiteer, beneficiary of the 2008 financial bailout in the US and financier of the “ruin of the river” private power projects in BC; and Coca Cola, the corporation responsible for the murder of trade unionists in Latin America, depletion of ground water and destruction of surface water needed by vulnerable communities in India, major profiteer from the commodification of water, and beneficiary of monopoly contracts at schools and universities across the country. Olympic national partner The Royal Bank Canada (RBC) has been identifiedby the Rainforest Action Network as the biggest financiers of the Tar Sands, and has also sponsored Oil Sands Discovery center in Fort McMurray that serves as a propaganda tool for the industry. The Tar Sands are clearly the most environmentally destructive project on the planet, destroying indigenous lands, emitting more Greenhouse Gases than hundreds of countries, poisoning the watershed for the entire Athabasca region.Even the Government of Alberta has now confirmed elevated levels of rare cancers in the downstream Indigenous community of Fort Chipewyan.

TAKING ACTION AT A ROYAL BANK NEAR YOU!

Every Friday at 12 noon - Starting October 16th Beginning in the month of October, we are asking activists to be present at local RBC branches across the country every Friday noon hour with banners and flyers. We hope to have hundreds of actions across the country especially to compliment actions against the launch of the Royal Bank sponsored Olympic Torch Relay in Victoria on Friday October 30th.

>>> FIND A BRANCH NEAR YOU!

Simply google search “the Royal Bank” and the name of your city/town if you are not already aware of a bank near your home or workplace. Be sure to inform us about which branch you will be targeting and we can then ask others to join you or be present at another branch to cover as many locations as we can.

Send an email to: 2010corporatecampaign@gmail.com

A map of all locations will be updated online.

>>> DOWNLOAD MATERIALS

Leaflets will be available to download by October 9th 2009.

2010 CORPORATE CAMPAIGN

This call to action is being coordinated by organizers in Vancouver that have decided to take focused action against the corporate sponsors of the 2010 Games in support of and in solidarity with the diverse movements in opposition to the Olympic Industry and its impacts. There will be future calls to action against other corporate sponsors. This first call for action against the Royal Bank is endorsed by: Indigenous Environmental Network, Rainforest Action Network, Olympic Resistance Network, Oilsands truth.org and Council of Canadians – BC/Yukon Region. If your organization would like to endorse this call please contact us by email: 2010corporatecampaign@gmail.com

--- Monday, Oct. 19 (series ongoing most Mondays until Dec. 7)

"THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN MYTH AND REALITY"

FREE speakers series of Olympic critics and organisers ongoing most Mondays, 5pm, from Sept. 14 - Dec. 7. Hosted by UBC's Green College. Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=133767310558&ref=ts

The speakers begin at 5pm with time for questions (FREE, open to all, no reservations). Optional dinner with speaker at Green College starts at 6:30pm ($12 for students and $16 for non-students; reserve a spot by noon Sundays at 604-822-0912). Located in the Green College Coach House at 6201 Cecil Green Park Road (north of NW Marine Drive).

MAP at www.maps.ubc.ca/?412 .

For more info email alissawt(at)shaw.ca

- Monday, Oct. 19: "Olympics on unceded Indigenous land.” Gord Hill. Hillis an Indigenous activist, webmaster of no2010.com and a member of the Olympic Resistance Network

- Monday, Oct. 26: "How the Olympics impact the poor and homeless." Laura Track. Track is a lawyer with Pivot Legal Society specializing in housing issues.

- Monday, Nov. 2: "Olympic security and civil liberties: A lasting legacy." David Eby. Eby is the Acting Executive Director of the BC Civil Liberties Association.

- Monday, Nov. 16: "The myth of the Green Games." Harjap Grewal and Dustin Johnson. Grewal, Council of Canadians, is a member of No One is Illegal, and the Olympic Resistance Network. Johnson is an Indigenous activist.

- Monday, Nov. 30: "Understanding the Olympics as part of corporate culture." Garth Mullins. Mullins is a Vancouver-based social justice activist and member of the Olympic Resistance Network.

- Monday, Dec. 7: "IOC Corruption: Would you take these people home to meet your loved ones?" Andrew Jennings. Mr. Jennings is the author of three books on the IOC.

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Tuesday, October 20 AMAZAY: A film about water

Tuesday October 20th @ 6:30 pm SFU Harbour Center - 515 West Hastings Street - Room 7000$5 By Donation (no one turned away). AMAZAY: A film about water (Vancouver Premiere) In 1968, the creation of the WAC Bennett Dam amassed the world’s largest artificial lake, the Williston Reservoir. The rising waters flooded the Sekani from their homelands and resulted in the destruction of the lower half of their watershed. In 2003 Northgate Minerals proposed to dump 750 million tones of acid tailings into a pristine lake.The Tse Keh Nay said no.

The battle forAmazay Lake began… The Tse Keh Nay - the Takla Lake, Tsay Keh Dene and Kwadacha First Nations– fought through a flawed environmental assessment process for 5 years. This is their story. Film will be followed a presentation by Loretta Williams, from theTsilhqot’in National Government, about their own campaign to protect Teztan Biny (Fish Lake) from the proposed Prosperity Mine. Similar to the Northgate Minerals proposal for Amazay Lake, Taseko Mines Ltd. is also proposing the use of Teztan Biny as a tailings lake, a practice that since 2002 has been supported by controversial changes to the Fisheries Act under Schedule 2. In 2006, two lakes in Newfoundland were approved for destruction and many other lakes in BC, and across the country, are threatened by this loop hole provided by the federal government for the mining industry. The Tsilhqot’in Nation have filed a writ in B.C. Supreme Court claiming their Aboriginal right to fish. The claim, if successful, will prevent Taseko Mines Ltd. from developing its proposed Prosperity Project, 125 km southwest of Williams Lake. The Governments of BC and Canada will most likely appeal a title case decision right to the Supreme Court of Canada and the Tsilhqot’in will need your support!

This event is organized and sponsored by the Council of Canadians and the Wilderness Committee. For more information please emailhgrewal@canadians.org or call 604 340 2455.

-----

Wednesday, Oct. 21 2010 Welcoming Committee – organising meeting to plan a mass demo for the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Games on February 12, 2010 Wednesday, October 21, 7-9 pm @ SFU Harbour Centre (515 West Hastings Street) 1315 Scotiabank Lecture Room

This is the second meeting of a coalition/group to plan a broad-based public mobilization for Feb 12, 2010, the date of opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The basis of unity, action plan, and specifics are up to those who choose to participate in the 2010 Welcoming Committee.The goal is to invite a wide range of activists (Indigenous, social justice, labour, environmental, anti-poverty, civil libertarian, community, women’s groups and individuals) to build a broad and accessible protest presence. If you are unable to attend but are interested in being involved, please email us your contact information at 2010welcoming@resist.ca so we can add you to the organizing list.

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Friday, October 23 Anti-Olympics Extravaganza!

The Vancouver-Whistler 2010 Winter Olympics are just around the corner. It’s time to take some action!

* Friday October 23, 2009 6:30 pm

** Rhizome Café, 317 East Broadway

1) Get informed: Sudbury-based sociologist and author GARY KINSMAN speaks on national security and queer resistance to the Olympics, LINDSAY BOMBERRY (Onondaga Nation, Eel clan of the Haudenosaune Confederacy League of Peace) will talk about Indigenous opposition to the Olympics.

2) Get inspired: Local multi-talented Nuxalk and Cayuga emcee JB THE FIRST LADY and others share their skills and get you pumped for resistance.

3) Get expressive: Share your thoughts about the Olympics and its effects at the Anti-Olympics Speaker’s Corner. The Olympic Resistance NetworkMedia Committee and the Vancouver Media Co-op will be recording your opinions, rants, and ideas.

4) Get to action: Take part in the Anti-Olympics treasure hunt. Grab a bagfull of materials and head to the streets to document and express your opposition to the games.

5) Share your actions: Come to Rhizome in November (details to come soon!) to collect prizes from the treasure hunt, make a collage of your actions and watch the video from the anti-olympics speaker's corner.

The Olympics are not going away. The devastating effects are here. But we can still very loudly say: *No Olympics on Stolen Native Land!*

Organized by No One Is Illegal Vancouver. For more information, email noii-van@resist.ca or call 778-833-4484.

Ourwebsite is http://www.nooneisillegal.org

Facebook RSVP: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=140937948340

-------- Events in Galiano Island: ---

Saturday, Oct. 17 * Not in Our Backyard...Or is it?

We detest the Olympics!

* Saturday Oct. 17th on Galiano Island at The South Hall

presentations and workshops -- 1-6pm

by donation

member of the Olympic Resistance Network will be speaking

live music -- 6pm-12am $10 or donation, no one refused

Featuring: Dubin Hood

Venganza de Cochino

Fuck NoRy

dylan GLonny

contact: crackintheclink@graffiti.net

---------- Events in Seattle: ----

Weekend of Oct. 17-18 ORN @ Seattle Anarchist Bookfair

Seattle Anarchist Book Fair - October 17-18 2009

Underground Events Center

2407 1st Ave (between Battery St & Wall St)

Seattle, WA 98121

http://www.seattleanarchist.org/

-------- Events in Victoria: ---

Friday, Oct. 30 ANTI-OLYMPIC TORCH RELAY KICKOFF

The Canada-wide Olympic Torch Relay officially begins in Victoria, Lekwungen and WSANEC Territories, on October 30th and the Anti-Olympic Festival will be there to greet it. Join us in the spirit of creative resistance to ongoing colonization, cut-backs in social services, environmental destruction, the privatization of public space, the quashing of free speech, and the corporate spectacle.

==> PROGRAM INFORMATION FOR FRI OCT 30TH <==

1. Early: The exact location, route and time of the torch kickoff is still a mystery, but officials have said that the torch will be lit in downtown Victoria and paraded around Victoria until later in the day. Exact details will be released closer to the date.

2. 2:00pm, Anti-Olympics festival of resistance in "Spirit Square" (formerly known as Centennial Square) downtown Victoria on Pandora between Government and Blanshard.

3. 4:30pm: "Zombie March" In memoriam of Olympics past, hosted by the Anti-Olympics festival. Depature from Spirit/Centennial Square. People are encouraged to bring scary costumes, or just costumes!

4. 5:30pm: The Torch will be blessed during an officially planned ceremony at the Legislature buildings. Does your group want to get a message to the world on October 30th? Over a thousand media people can't be wrong. Get in on the fun! Organize a friendly competition, step up to the soapbox, take over a ring of the Five Ring Circus! Music, art and theatre especially welcome. Join us, don't sit this one out!

For updates as they become available keep your eyes on:http://no2010victoria.net/ and http://olympicresistance.net/

==> TRANSPORTATION INFORMATION FOR FRI OCT 30TH <==

People are encouraged to arrive in Victoria as early as they can on Oct 30. If you can go the night before and have somewhere to stay you are encouraged to do this.

* Transit from Vancouver to Victoria: http://tripplanning.translink.ca

Take the Canada Line southbound to Bridgeport Station (25 min) Transfer to the bus "620 Tsawwassen ferry terminal" (to make 1st ferry board at 5:55am) Buy a walk on ticket for the ferry going to Swartz Bay. Go to www.bcferries.com for schedules and fares. The 1st ferry is 7:00am. After arriving in Swartz Bay, there is a bus stop right in front of the ferry terminal, where you’ll catch the "No. 70 Downtown/Airport" bus. The cost is $2.75. If you catch the first ferry you will arrive at 9:30 am.

Check the Victoria Transit website for schedules: http://www.bctransit.com/regions/vic/schedules/schedule.cfm?p=dir.text&route=70:1&day=1&

==> CAN YOU HELP? <==

1) No2010 Victoria is working on providing billeting and people are encouraged to go over the night before (Thurs Oct 29th) but room is limited.

* If you know folks that can provide sleeping spaces in Victoria please contact no2010victoria@gmail.com

2) Olympic Resistance Network - Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories is working to coordinate some transportation pooling (for those with special equipment needs) on the night of Thurs October 29th and the morning of October 30th.

* Anyone who can give a ride on the night of the 29th or very early in the morning of the 30th please contact Marla at: marlarenn@gmail.com

Hosted by: No2010 Victoria

This invitation brought to you by the Olympic Resistance Network

-------------------------

Olympic Resistance Network:

contact - olympicresistance@riseup.net

http://olympicresistance.net/ http://www.no2010.com

ABOUT THE OLYMPIC RESISTANCE NETWORK

The Olympic Resistance Network is primarily based in Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories and exists as a space to coordinate anti-2010 Olympics efforts. In doing so, we act in solidarity with other communities across'BC' - particularly indigenous communities who have been defending their land against the onslaught of the Olympics since the bid itself. Our organizing is largely being done under the slogan of "No Olympics on Stolen Native Land," while creating an opportunity for all anti-capitalist, indigenous, anti-poverty, labour, migrant justice, environmental justice, anti-war, and anti-colonial activists to come together to confront this two-week circus and the oppression it represents.