INTERNATIONAL POLITICS EGYPT/ WINNIPEG:

WINNIPEG DEMONSTRATES IN SOLIDARITY WITH EGYPT:

Last Saturday local Egyptians resident in Winnipeg and their supporters came out to demonstrate in solidarity with the people of the Egyptian revolution. It was an interesting, spirited and actually quite enjoyable demonstration. Mass media outlets estimated the crowd as anywhere from 130 to 200 people. Molly's own admittedly flawed count was about 150 to 160. It consisted of a wide variety of people, both in terms of ethnicity and in terms of age with people from school children to grandparents represented. Even the speeches were less annoying than they usually are at demonstrations...brief and to the point with representation from both Egyptians and the labour community giving their piece. It was actually amazing to me to see that there is indeed an Egyptian community here on the frigid prairies. One wonders how they ended up here, and there's surely a lot of wonderful life stories behind this fact.

You can access video of the demonstration here , and there is a collection of photos here. For those interested in further information about the demo, and to see what might be upcoming in the future go to Winnipeg Protest For Egypt and Winnipeg Human Rights And Activist Events.

In the interim here is how the demo was seen by the Winnipeg Free Press.

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Canada not doing enough, rally told
By: Bill Redekop
Canada needs to be a stronger voice for democracy in Egypt to stop government-sponsored bloodshed in that country, said people at a Winnipeg rally Saturday.

"Canada has said what the United States said, (that) we need a peaceful transition," said Basil Elmayergi in an interview after he addressed the rally supporting democracy in Egypt.

But that implies allowing President Hosni Mubarak to stay in power until elections are held in September. That will result in a "slaughter-fest" by Mubarak's police and military against those advocating democracy, he said.

"I don't think Canada is doing enough," said Elmayergi.

About 200 people attended the rally on the legislative building steps. People waved Egyptian flags and placards and spoke passionately about the changes sweeping Arab countries in the Middle East and Africa. One placard said, "Game Over," beside a photo of Mubarak and another said, "We Are Finally Free."

Elmayergi heralded those in Egypt who have stood up for democracy as "our courageous brothers and sisters."

"Send a message that there has been enough beatings, enough torture, enough oppression," he said. "(Egypt) is going to be such a great country — a leader in the Arab world, a leader to the African continent."

Winnipeg's Egyptian population is estimated at only about 200 people, but the city has about 6,000 people of Arabic descent. Saturday's crowd was a mix of both.

Arabic people in the crowd said they see what is happening in Egypt, after the ouster of the dictatorship in Tunisia late last year, as the beginning of change throughout the Arab world.

"I think Tunisia was an inspiration for all of us," said Shirin Farag, Elmayergi's wife, who came to Canada 17 years ago.

"When Egypt saw that a nation of 10 million people (Tunisia) was able to oust its president, Egypt, with 80 million people, thought it could do it, too," she said.

Kadim Al-Roubaie, who emigrated from Iraq 36 years ago, said he attended the rally "to support democracy."

"I've lived here 36 years. I love it. It's a privilege to live in a democracy," he said.

bill.redekop@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 6, 2011 A15

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Here is the much more brief notice published in the Winnipeg Sun. It should be noted that their estimate of about 130 is low. Personally I am not given to inflating crowd numbers as I believe it is bad policy in the long term. My own count of 150 to 160 may be slightly on the low side and is definitely not an overestimate.

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Show of support for Egypt
By ROSS ROMANIUK, Winnipeg Sun

A crowd of Winnipeg protesters on Saturday joined the spirit of fierce demonstrations a half a world away, demanding that the Canadian government pressure Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to resign.

About 130 people converged at the Manitoba legislature's front steps to shout their anger at what they say is the Harper government's unwillingness to push Mubarak to step down immediately, in the face of outrage in Egypt over government policies that protesters there say are hurting their country.

Unlike the violence that has marked the massive rioting and street battles in Cairo for the past week, though, the Winnipeg demonstration was emotional yet peaceful.

Despite talk in recent days of a possible "transition" of power from Mubarak to a successor, Egypt's longtime president has remained in office.

ross.romaniuk@sunmedia.ca

CANADIAN LABOUR:

MAYBE BY UKRAINIAN CHRISTMAS:

Two more days to go until Christmas by the Julian calender, known in these parts as "Ukrainian Christmas". Yet down in the post offices of Winnipeg Christmas packages meant to be delivered by December 25th still sit undelivered according to the following article from the Winnipeg Free Press. The reason...the so-called "improvements" mandated by Canada Post management, "improvements" that have been discussed before at this blog and at The Workers' Struggle With The Modern Post blog by postal workers here in Winnipeg. This "modernisation" is one that Canada Post hopes to apply across the country. Because of this Winnipeg workers have received support from other Canada Post workers across the country in their struggle to prevent what is not just against their own interests but against those of the general public. As the backlog in Winnipeg demonstrates. Here's the story from the local press.

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Christmas gifts undelivered: CUPW
By: Katie Dangerfield

Thousands of Christmas packages sat undelivered in the former downtown post office as late as New Year's Eve, a local union official said.

"A good chunk of the parcels sitting in the 266 Graham Ave. building are Christmas wrapped," said Bob Tyer, president of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.

Missing presents?
Are you missing Christmas presents you were expecting in the mail? If so call the Free Press at 697-7292 or email city.desk@freepress.mb.ca .


Since the introduction of Canada Post's modern delivery system in September, Tyer said there has been a considerable backup of undelivered mail -- especially during the holidays.

During the New Year's weekend, Canada Post employees were set to work overtime s to catch up on deliveries, Tyler said.

This fall, Canada Post introduced what it called a new, more efficient delivery system designed to cut costs. The new system requires letter carriers to carry two bundles of mail, instead of one. Routes and work days are also longer.

Some Winnipeg letter carriers went on strike in November to protest against the new system. Carriers have said it can cause back and neck injuries.

A spokeswoman for Canada Post, Anick Losier, said in an email that the corporation's employees are still adjusting to the new system.

"We just finished our busiest time of year," said Losier. "Our volumes in Winnipeg reached over 1.4 million pieces of mail daily, while normally it is just under one million pieces."

"We even had our people ensure all holiday-themed packages and cards were delivered to customers on time for the holidays," she said.

Tyer said mail service in Winnipeg wasn't as smooth as Losier makes it sound. Since the new system was implemented, the corporation "doesn't care if they don't cover all their routes anymore," he said.

One Winnipeg post office employee who asked not to be named said the corporation is sweeping its problems under a rug, hoping they will go away,

"At one of the depots, supervisors were throwing out 300 to 400 flyers that were a day late, instead of delivering them," the employee said.

Tyer said Canada Post has had countless complaints from businesses and employees regarding the new system, but Losier said the changes were necessary "to help our company stay efficient and viable."

"That's what will protect the future of the company and our employees' incomes and pensions," said Losier.

Tyer said that since September staff injuries have risen "astronomically," and Canada Post has not hired enough people to fill vacancies due to injury and staff retirements.

During the holiday rush, Canada Post brought in retirees and supervisors from across the country to deliver the additional mail.

katie.dangerfield@freepress.mb.ca

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Meanwhile the national Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has been circulating a petition for some months asking that the Canadian postal system be strengthened rather than destroyed (perhaps the "modernization" is really part of some long term plan for "privatization"). Please go to their website or this link to sign the following petition to your MP and to the federal Minister in charge of Canada Post. And don't forget to keep up to date on what is happening out here on the windswept prairies by reading The Workers Struggle With The Modern Post.
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Please tell Minister Merrifield: Stop cutting public postal service and jobs
I am writing, as both a user and an owner of Canada Post, to voice my concern about the future of our public post office.

Canada Post has plans to cut thousands of jobs in hundreds of communities across the country by modernizing and reviewing its operations and privatizing philatelic and call centres. The corporation is also cutting services by eliminating rural mail box delivery, closing post offices and removing street letter boxes.

To me, these cuts indicate that Canada Post is focusing increasingly on commercial interests, rather than the public interest.

I believe that Canada Post, as a public institution, should put the public interest first. One of the ways it could do this is by sharing the benefits of its $2 billion modernization program. At the moment, Canada Post intends to use all the productivity gains from this program to cut jobs and save millions annually. This is our post office -- the public should share in the benefits too.

Please tell Rob Merrifield, the Minister responsible for Canada Post, to instruct the corporation to:

1) Put the public interest first.
2) Share the benefits of postal modernization with the public by preserving and improving public postal service and jobs.

CANADIAN LABOUR - WINNIPEG:
PIZZERIA GUSTO WILDCATTED OVER FIRING OF CHEF:



The following item has caused a bit of a flurry here in the Peg, with armies lining up on both sides of the debate to comment. It starts off small...real small...a student at Red River College putting together a self made book. Writing, designing, and self publishing it all in one the student put together a collection of interviews with Winnipeg chefs entitled 'The Last Crumb' and printed up all of 100 copies. Not exactly an overwhelming piece of publicity, but the owner of one restaurant read about his chef in it and decided that said chef was a detriment to the image of his outfit. Termination. The chef, however, was popular with the other workers at the restaurant, and they walked out along with him in protest. Here's the first story on this matter. Read it and see what you think. Form an opinion. Then go on to the second one. Here, from the Winnipeg Free Press...
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Not making any dough here
Chef says he was fired, eatery doors closed
By: Matt Preprost

One of the city's most celebrated restaurants is closed after staff walked out Friday when the head chef was fired.

Scott Bagshaw, who ran the kitchen at Pizzeria Gusto on Academy Road, said he was fired Friday afternoon after the eatery's owners read a story Bagshaw shared with a Winnipeg writer about a "two-day bender" while working in Australia almost eight years ago.

Bagshaw says he was fired and was asked to finish out his shift. Instead, he and his kitchen staff walked out.

"We walked out in solidarity," Bagshaw said. "The restaurant is still closed. They don't even have a dishwasher, they've got nothing.

"The intellectual property of the recipes, they don't have that either. They've got a menu but they don't have a way to recreate it," he said.

Pizzeria Gusto co-owner Don Mottola declined comment Sunday evening. Several calls and messages left to co-owner Bobby Mottola went unreturned by press time.

The pizzeria is a popular restaurant and many local and national food magazines laud Bagshaw as one of the top chefs in Winnipeg.

Cook Tara Podaima and sous-chef Matt Withoos were working Friday and walked out with Bagshaw, Podaima said.

"I was prepping in the kitchen. Scott came to work and came into the kitchen to let us know he had arrived and then went out to the front. He came back five minutes later and told me he was fired," said Podaima, who had worked for Bagshaw for over a year. "We told (Matt) what happened, got changed, packed up, and headed out the door.

"It wasn't really a question in our mind whether we would go with him or not," Podaima said.

Podaima said the other kitchen staff didn't show up for work later that night or on Saturday. The restaurant is normally closed Sunday.

A hand-written sign on the restaurant door says that it is closed for the evening and apologizes for any inconvenience.

In the story about his experiences in Australia, Bagshaw, 36, details a party romp he was taken on by his then-boss after working 23 straight 16-hour days. Bagshaw went to party after party for two days straight over a weekend, without sleep, before returning to work on the Monday. The story happened in 2002, while he was working at Monsoon Vietnamese Bistro in Australia.

"The (Pizzeria Gusto) owners came in after they saw it and said I misrepresented what the restaurant was about and what it needed to represent," Bagshaw said.

"I don't see how (the story) would damage the restaurant," he said. "Anything I said about the restaurant was positive and all my stories didn't take place in this restaurant, not even in this country."

In August 2008, Free Press food critic Marion Warhaft gave the restaurant four and a half stars out of five; the same year, Where magazine named the restaurant one of the top 10 in Canada.

Bagshaw's Australian story is published in an upcoming book about Winnipeg chefs called The Last Crumb, written by Red River College student Rhéanne Marcoux, who wrote, designed and self-published the book as part of a year-long project. Only 100 copies were printed, and Marcoux is still trying to line up stores and restaurants to sell it.

"My intentions when writing this book were to get Winnipeg chefs the acknowledgment and proper recognition they deserve," Marcoux wrote in an email. "I never could have anticipated this. I was shocked and really bothered by it all," she said.

Added Bagshaw: "She wanted stories about chefs being chefs -- the crazy stories about how we live and how we think. (Bobby) was aware about the book, he knew what was happening and he was all for it," Bagshaw said.
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Seems fairly straighforward doesn't it ? The boss at Pizzeria Gusto loves control beyond all things, and he should really do something about his long standing habit of indulging in concrete enemas. Ah, but there's another little bit of this story that makes it a little more complicated. Here's the rest of the story from CBC.
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Chef fired over racy comments
CBC News
The doors of a popular gourmet pizza restaurant in Winnipeg remained closed for a third day on Monday after an article in a recently published book allegedly prompted its owner to fire his head chef.

Scott Bagshaw told CBC News that he was fired by the owners of Pizzeria Gusto on Friday because of racy comments he made about the restaurant business, his past drug use and his interactions with colleagues while at work.

'We play the "would you" game .… You know, "would you sleep with her?" type of thing.'
—Chef Scott Bagshaw, quoted in The Last Crumb.

The article appears in a locally published book about Winnipeg chefs called The Last Crumb, which was written by a Red River College communications student as part of a year-long, school-sanctioned project.

Bagshaw said one of the owners of the Academy Road restaurant, Bobby Mottola, read the article and fired him.

Bagshaw said he went into the kitchen and told his staff. Some responded by quitting on the spot as a show of solidarity with him — right before a busy shift.

"I walked in … and like that, no questions asked, [they] rolled up their knives, took off their [uniforms] and walked out with me," Bagshaw said.

Mottola declined to be interviewed about what happened, but said the restaurant will reopen as soon as possible.

'100% honest'
Bagshaw said he doesn't regret giving the interview that led to the article and his subsequent firing, saying author Rheanne Marcoux only asked him to tell the truth about his past experiences.

"She wanted a story about how chefs are and what we think and what we do, and I … gave it to her … like 100 per cent honest," Bagshaw said.

In an excerpt from the two-page article, Bagshaw comments on what it's like to work in the pizzeria's open kitchen:

"Being in an open kitchen does have its perks. 'We play the "would you" game,' laughs [Bagshaw], who spends most of his 14-hour shifts rubbing elbows with his sous-chef Matt. 'You know, "would you sleep with her?" type of thing. We have our inside jokes, it makes you forget you’ve been working 14 hours.'"

Bagshaw said he's already got leads for a new job. He said the loyalty his staffers showed by walking out with him was incredible.

"As bad as getting fired feels, that feeling really offset it," he said.

The entire article featuring Bagshaw can be viewed by clicking the link at the top right of the story. Warning: some graphic language appears. ( Molly Note: The article in question can be viewed by going to the link below )


Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2010/03/29/man-pizzeria-gusto-bagshaw-fired.html#ixzz0ji9UMits
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I personally have to say that I still have a lot of sympathy for Bagshaw even if he comes of as far less sympathetic in the article. Read it. It's far more entertaining than these two news stories. If I were working there I'd definitely have walked out along with the other staff. Still...it boggles the mind to imagine what he was thinking when he made his "true confession". The 100 copy book would probably have disappeared into the student's curriculum vitae if the owners of the restaurant hadn't overreacted. They should have waited for it to die a natural death. The revelations, however, are more than sufficient for the sort of Hitler-Stalin pact of the Jesus and law and order forces allied with the politically correct to have mounted a jihad if it were to come to their ears. But it likely wouldn't have. You can, however, see the point of trying to avoid this sort of crusade, even if the owners ended up doing themselves much more damage than even the worst scenario could have created. In any case it is doubtful that more than one in twenty actual diners at this trendy restaurant would have worked up a nanogram of outrage. What do you think ?

CANADIAN LABOUR

DYING FOR WORK:

April 28, Workers' Memorial Day, is fast approaching, and like in years past Molly will be blogging extensively on this subject. Workplace related deaths are actually a far more common cause of mortality than any wars. In any given year 2 million people die worldwide of workplace accidents or occupational illnesses. I guess there are wars and then there are wars, and the war of the bosses against their workers is much more deadly than any other. Here's a potpourri of recent workers deaths in Canada. To say the least this is a mere snapshot. First from CTV Toronto a call from the Ontario Federation of Labour for a police probe into a construction accident in Toronto earlier this month.

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Union demands police probe into worker's death
The Canadian Press
TORONTO — The Ontario Federation of Labour is calling for a criminal probe into the death of a construction worker in east-end Toronto last week.

The man was building concrete forms when he fell through a hole on the second floor, plummeting about 10 metres to the basement.

The victim, known to co-workers as Ali, died in hospital later that day.

Friday's accident occurred at the University of Toronto's new $70 million Instructional Centre.

OFL president Sid Ryan is calling on police to investigate the accident to determine if criminal charges should be laid against the employer.

He says the law allows for the prosecutions of company officials if they fail to keep workplaces healthy and safe.

Ryan says the March 12th death was the seventh fall-related fatality in as many weeks ( NB - Molly ) and "another preventable death."

"The carnage in our workplaces has to stop." he said.

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Here's an item from the University of Toronto newspaper The Varsity that clarifies and expands on the incident mentioned above.

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Site worker dies on Scarborough campus
Labour union seeks criminal investigation

Samya Kullab
A construction worker named Hilit Mutlu died last week when he fell through a hole on the second floor of U of T Scarborough’s new $70 million Instructional Centre, plummeting 10 metres to the basement. The accident occurred on Friday, March 12.

Mutlu, a recent immigrant from Turkey, died later that day when he was rushed to Sunnybrook.

“This is actually the second fatality with this group of companies and the second fatality as a result of a fall,” said a spokesperson for the Ontario Federation of Labour.

In June 2008, Petro, a co-worker of Ali, fell three metres from a cantilevered portion of a support beam at a condo site.

OFL president Sid Ryan called for a police investigation of the accident to see if criminal charges should be laid against Ali’s employer, Red 2000 Structures Inc., for failing to keep the workplace safe..

Ryan described the incident as “another preventable death.”

“All we’re saying is that we want a criminal investigation and only if evidence warrants should there be charges. What we’re looking specifically is for an investigation through the Bill C-35 amendment, which places a legal obligation under the criminal code around employer negligence,” said the OFL spokesperson.

Last December 24, another four Toronto construction workers fell to their deaths when scaffolding collapsed. The OFL called for a criminal investigation under Bill C-45.

The Bill amended the Criminal Code of Canada to allow for the prosecution of corporate executives, directors, and managers who neglect to uphold their responsibilities to make and keep workplaces healthy and safe.

The death of Ali coincided with the 50th anniversary of the Hogg’s Hollow disaster, commemorating the death of five Italian immigrant workers who died while constructing a tunnel in 1960. The death caused public outrage and mobilized the Italian community to change health and safety laws.

Ontario tallied 10 fall-related construction worker deaths in 2009, according to the Labour Ministry.

Tim Legault contributed reporting for this article.

A previous version of this article incorrectly reported the name of the worker who died as Ali. In fact, his name is Hilit Mutlu. The Varsity regrets the error.

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Here's another item from radio station VOCM out in Newfoundland about yet another incident.

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Man Dies in IOC Industrial Accident; Union Questions Air Ambulance Delay
The Iron Ore Company of Canada says 56-year-old Eldon Perry is the victim of an industrial accident at their operation in Labrador City. IOC says 33-year-old Joshua Hayse also involved in the incident remains in hospital in serious condition. The RNC say the two men, both from Lab City, were working at the site when they fell off a piece of lift equipment Thursday afternoon around 2 p.m. They were brought to Captain William Jackman Memorial Hospital. The Constabulary and Occupational Health and Safety are investigating, and operations at the mine have been temporarily suspended.

Steelworkers' Union President George Kean says they are mourning the loss of their member, and hope Hayse will have a full recovery. He says Perry was a kind co-worker, dedicated family man and well known in the community.

Kean says there are concerns about the unavailability of an air ambulance yesterday. He says it finally arrived around 1 a.m. Friday morning. Kean says it's a two-hour flight from St. Anthony, so he is wondering where the air ambulance was Thursday. He says the individual could have been at the Health Sciences Centre last night with the proper care available. Kean wants something done about the issue, and he wants to see health care improved in Labrador West.

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Here's a little reminder from the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) about what the situation used to be and what we have yet to achieve. The anniversary was mentioned above. Molly would add the warning about what could happen once more if the employers "win the war".
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Labour movement commemorates 50th anniversary of Hogg’s Hollow disaster
(TORONTO) -- In 1960, the horrific deaths of five Italian immigrant workers who died while constructing a tunnel produced such public outrage, mobilizations in the Italian community, and massive union organizing that health and safety laws were forever changed.

Unaware of their rights and desperate for paid employment, the workers became victims of an employer who continuously violated almost every safety regulation governing the Toronto tunnel project.

“Today we honour the victims of the 1960 disaster and note that they have become a potent symbol of the importance of rigorously enforced health and safety laws,” says OFL President Sid Ryan.

“But while vitally important progress has been made, workplace dangers continue to exist for too many of Ontario’s more than seven million workers.”

Last December 24th, four workers fell to their deaths when their scaffolding collapsed. A fifth worker barely survived. The OFL called for an immediate criminal investigation utilizing “Westray” Bill C-45.

The Bill amended the Criminal Code of Canada to allow for criminal prosecutions of corporate executives, directors and managers who act wrongfully or neglect to uphold their responsibilities to make and keep workplaces healthy and safe. In the six years since it was passed more than 400 Ontario workers have been killed on the job and nearly two million injured, yet not one employer in Ontario has been prosecuted. ( NB - Molly )

“We are at another turning point in health and safety protection. C-45 must become routinely integrated into provincial responses to death and injury. Too many irresponsible employers and managers will only get the message when they too have their futures at stake,” said Ryan.
Contact:

Sid Ryan

President, Ontario Federation of Labour

p: 416-209-0066 (mobile)

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Finally, to give a little local reference to this topic here is a story originally from the Winnipeg Free Press about local NDP MP Pat Martin's long standing campaign to end the asbestos industry in Canada. This latest is simply about ending government subsidies to this killer industry. Martin is one of the few members of parliament who has actually ever worked for a living.

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Feds should cut asbestos advocacy funding: NDP MP
Mia Rabson, Winnipeg Free Press: Thursday, March 18, 2010

OTTAWA — A New Democrat MP has challenged the federal government to cut its budget funding for the Chrysotile Institute, a Quebec-based advocacy group for the asbestos industry.

In the budget, the government affirmed its annual $250,000 in direct support for the institute, but Winnipeg MP Pat Martin said Thursday that asbestos is an unsafe product that the government should not be paying to promote.

"It's corporate welfare for corporate serial killers," said Martin.

At a Natural Resources Committee meeting he proposed a motion to cut the funding from the budget estimates. He has the backing of the Canadian Cancer Society, which wrote the committee this week asking for the institute's funds to be redirected to a strategy to phase out the use and exports of asbestos.

Canada is one of the last producers and the second largest exporter of asbestos in the world. About 200,000 tonnes of the fibre is still mined in Quebec and exported each year, mainly to developing countries such as India and Indonesia. It is used mostly to reinforce construction materials.

But the World Health Organization says all forms of asbestos, including chrysotile, causes cancer, and it has been banned by the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and all countries in the European Union.

It is associated with a number of fatal lung diseases and is responsible for more than 60 per cent of the industrial-related deaths in the country each year.

Clement Godbout is a registered lobbyist who heads up the Chrysotile Institute, a non-profit organization set up in 1984 by the Quebec and federal governments to promote the safe use of Chrysotile asbestos around the world.

The institute has done a great job of protecting Canadian workers from the health hazards of asbestos, he said, and now the institute uses that expertise to educate developing countries on safe use of the product.

"Canada is a resource-rich country and we export all kinds of chemicals and natural products that are cancer-causing if used improperly, some more than chrysotile," he said, giving such examples as lead and uranium.

There is only one remaining asbestos mine in Canada. It is in the riding of Natural Resources Minister Christian Paradis.

At the committee Thursday, Paradis said he has long been aware of Martin's criticism of the asbestos industry but said Martin cherry-picks facts from studies and ignore others.

"These studies show chrysotile asbestos is safe," said Paradis. ( "safer than" is not "safe" - Molly )

He said the position of the government to continue funding the institute is based on science and that it is safe as long as its risk is properly managed.

Paradis said that is the whole purpose of the Chrysotile Institute. ( I suppose that defending a profitable industry has nothing whatsoever to do with it - Molly )

"It is not an institute of lobbying," said Paradis. "It is there to promote the safe use of asbestos." ( cough, cough, cough - Molly )

Last year, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff came out in favour of banning asbestos exports after changing his position a few times. But the Liberal natural resources critic Geoff Regan said Martin's appearance at the committee was nothing more than a political stunt that took away from other important work the committee should have attended to. Martin is not a normal member of the committee but appeared Thursday solely to introduce his motion regarding asbestos. ( Martin actually once worked in an asbestos mine, unlike the other members whose "work experience" is probably entirely in legal finagling. I can imagine that he has a personal interest that goes beyond the protection of business clients- Molly )

"He was just using the committee as his soap box," said Regan. "I have no great affection for the Chrysotile Institute. Our leader has been very clear we believe chrysotile asbestos poses significant health risks."

But Regan said the response is to address regional economic diversification.

Regan said the NDP knows amending the estimates is a confidence matter that leads to election talk and that's not appropriate.

"I don't want any part of these NDP electioneering games," he said.

Martin called the response "spineless." ( I'd have different insult terms for it- Molly )

CANADIAN LABOUR-MANITOBA:

TEMBEC LOCKOUT CONTINUES AS WORKERS REJECT OFFER:

The lockout of workers at the Tembec plant in Pine Falls Manitoba seems set to continue into the New Year as workers there have rejected an offer on the part of the company to change their status from "locked out" to "laid off" in return for concessions that would essentially give up all other rights that they are entitled to. Here is how the matter was reported by the Winnipeg Free Press.

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Union rejects layoff offer at Tembec's newsprint mill in Manitoba:
By: THE CANADIAN PRESS
PINE FALLS, Man. - Hundreds of locked-out workers at a Tembec forestry mill in Pine Falls, Man., rejected Wednesday a company proposal to change the terms of their severance and employment security.

During a meeting Tuesday with two conciliators from the Manitoba Department of Labour, Tembec had proposed changing the lockout to a layoff, an idea the union supported because it would allow its members to collect Employment Insurance.

However, the union said Tembec's offer was conditional on workers agreeing to defer severance pay and give up their employment security rights unless the operations were running at 100 per cent capacity.

"It is clear Tembec has no interest in ending this dispute because it tabled proposals it surely must have known would be rejected outright by their employees, our members," said United Steelworkers union area supervisor Wayne Skrypnyk.

In all, 280 workers have been on the picket line since September in a dispute over wage cuts, and their union has now applied for provincial arbitration.

The union said the company had been seeking wage and contract concessions that exceed 35 per cent.

Tembec announced earlier this month that it was putting the plant up for sale and was prepared to end the lockout, subject to an agreement on some local issues.

Before it locked out the workers, Tembec said it needed immediate and significant cuts in labour costs at the mill to keep it competitive.

Demand for newsprint has dropped across North America because of the recession and changes in newspapers affected by the migration of news and advertising to the Internet.

Tembec is one of Canada's largest forestry companies, with operations in Quebec and other parts of the country, and in France.

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Meanwhile the United Steel Workers have issued a press release which goes into more detail as to why the workers rejected the offer. It also mentions that the rejection was unanimous. To my knowledge no mass media outlet has picked up on this press release. Here it is from the Canadian Newswire.

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Tembec Denies Pine Falls Workers Severance, EI and Workplace Rights:
WINNIPEG, Dec. 23 /CNW/ - Locked-out members of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 3 - 1375, at the Tembec Manitoba Newsprint operations in Powerview-Pine Falls, unanimously rejected a company proposal Tuesday to change the lockout to a layoff if workers agreed to defer severance pay and give up their employment security rights unless the operations were running at 100 per cent capacity.

USW negotiators and Tembec met Tuesday with two conciliators from the Manitoba Department of Labour to possibly end the lockout that began September 1, 2009. Two hundred and sixty USW members and 20 members of the Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union are on the picket line in rejection of wage and contract concessions that exceed 35 per cent.

"It is clear Tembec has no interest in ending this dispute because it tabled proposals it surely must have known would be rejected outright by their employees, our members," said USW area supervisor Wayne Skrypnyk.

The USW has applied to the provincial labour board for Interest Arbitration.

Despite imposing the lockout, earlier this month Tembec admitted to the Manitoba government and the unions that it intends to either sell the newsprint mill or close it down.

"If Tembec agreed to change its lockout to a layoff, our members would be able to collect Employment Insurance," said Skrypnyk. "This would have helped the workers and the community weather the economic storm that has hit the industry."

He added: "Tembec's denial of a workable agreement that would provide workers and their families access to Employment Insurance is heartless, especially at Christmas time."
The USW represents 250,000 workers in all sectors of the Canadian economy.
For further information: Wayne Skrypnyk, USW Area Coordinator, (204) 232-7335

CANADIAN LABOUR-MANITOBA:

TEMBEC WORKERS TURN THUMBS DOWN ON ARBITRATION:

The lockout on the part of the Tembec pulp and paper plant in Pine Falls Manitoba has been ongoing since August 31. 270 members of the USW and the COPE unions are affected. As the following story from the Winnipeg Free Press says they have turned down the arbitration offer from the provincial government, afraid that the company will likely demand even more concessions than its already ridiculous demands. Get all the chips on the table so to speak. To be sure the NDP government is not exactly lining up in solid ranks behind the workers. As a PR exercise the provincial labour minister sent off a letter to the feds asking that the Pine Falls workers be able to collect EI while on layoff. A non-starter to say the least. Considering the recipient of the letter that is something like writing Satan asking him to finance a new cathedral dedicated to the Virgin Mary. As one of the laid off workers in the following story says there is a lot more that the government could be doing. Be that as it may the spectacle of the provincial Conservative opposition trying to make political hay out of the lockout is much more repulsive. If in power the Conservatives wouldn't have even given the cuddly shoulder to cry on that the NDP has restricted itself to doing. Not all members of the Legislature, however, are as cynical as the government and the opposition. According to the Dec. 3rd edition of the Selkirk Journal NDP MLA Greg Dewar, along with local City of Selkirk City Councillor Duane Nicol have been working to solicit donations to the USW/COPE Family Fund to help the workers over the holiday season. The MLA's office will continue to accept donations until the 7th of the month. This man's actions are much more commendable than those of the party that he belongs to. See the end of this post for how you can help these workers and their families. first, here's the story.

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LOCKED-OUT WORKERS TURN DOWN ARBITRATION:
Locked-out Tembec workers in Pine Falls have given a big thumbs-down to the province and its offer of binding arbitration to settle the three-month-old labour impasse.

Many of the workers were at the Manitoba legislative building Wednesday to press Premier Greg Selinger and his government to hold the newsprint company more accountable for the lock-out and its economic impact on the town north of Winnipeg. The 270 unionized workers were locked out by the company Aug. 31 after they overwhelmingly rejected a proposal that union officials said called for wage and benefits concessions totalling about 35 per cent.

Observers say at this pace the dispute may never get resolved: either the union will give up or Tembec will close the plant.

Workers said yesterday giving up is not an option, but added it won't be at the hands of an arbitrator under the province's Labour Relations Act. Under the act, either side in a strike or lockout can apply after 60 days for binding arbitration to settle the dispute.

Bill Lavallee, spokesman for the workers, said they don't want to go that route because the company has already signalled that it also wants to reopen the employee pension agreement, which is set to expire in 2013.

Lavallee said it's possible an arbitrator could agree to do that, and that's too big a risk as 65 of the employees are set to retire in five years and 170 of them in 10 years.

He said the province should hold Tembec's feet to the fire by clamping down on the company's forest management licence and removal of timber from the province.

"I'm locked out," Lavallee said. "Why aren't they locked out?"

Workers met with Selinger and Labour Minister Jennifer Howard after being invited to the legislature by Lac du Bonnet Tory Progressive Conservative MLA Gerald Hawranik. (Question: How do you spell "hypocrite" ? Answer: "C..o..n..s..e..r..v..a..t..i..v..e" -Molly )

Howard said during question period she has written to the company in an effort to bring both sides to the table.

"I'm looking forward to a favourable response," she said.

Tory Opposition Leader Hugh McFadyen said the length of the lockout is a blemish on the NDP.

He said in the house that if Gary Doer were still premier, he would have personally settled the dispute long ago. Doer quit about three months ago to become Canada's ambassador to the United States.

Selinger said his government will strengthen provincial pension legislation so that all workers' pensions are better protected, and that the threat to Tembec pensions can't be repeated.

The province appointed a mediator to intervene in labour dispute when it was only 18 days old, but that failed to bring any hint of a resolution.

Tembec, Powerview-Pine Falls' largest employer, has said it needs to achieve immediate reductions in labour costs to improve the competitive position of the plant, reeling from a decline in the North American demand for newsprint.

Tembec, which posted a loss of $38 million in the second quarter, has wood product, pulp, paperboard and newsprint plants across the country.

North American demand for newsprint has dropped almost 50 per cent since 2003 and the reduction in demand from 2008 to 2009 alone is equivalent to the capacity of seven or eight plants the size of Pine Falls (which can produce 180,000 tonnes of newsprint per year).
bruce.owen@freepress.mb.ca

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Want to help the Pine Falls workers at this hard time ? Here's how. You can send cheques to the USW & COPE Family Fund, earmarked for same via the Wings of Power Community and Family Resource Centre, Box 66, Pine Falls, MB R0E 1M0. All donations are tax deductible if you are Canadian. Make sure to tag the cheques as 'USW & COPE Family Fund' even though they should be made out to 'Wings of Power'.

CANADIAN LABOUR-MANITOBA:

PINE FALLS RALLIES BEHIND LOCKED OUT TEMBEC WORKERS:

The lockout at the Tembec plant in Pine Falls continues, but yesterday the residents of the town held a rally to show their support for the people affected. Here's a brief item from the Winnipeg Free Press about the rally.

Residents rally for locked-out workers:
The townspeople of Pine Falls showed up in full force on Friday to show solidarity for locked-out Tembec employees.

Organizers of a march in the one-industry town estimated 350 people came out to support the 230 pulp and paper workers.

"We had people in golf carts and wheelchairs, people from all walks of life. Everybody jumped on board when we put out the notices and went out for a walk," said Vicki Reid.

"If Tembec goes down, the town goes down."

The lockout came after workers overwhelmingly rejected a company proposal that union officials said called for wage and benefit concessions totalling 35 per cent.

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While the provincial Labour Minister has indeed appointed Winnipeg lawyer Michael Werier as a mediator the company's previous statements give no assurance that they intend to bargain seriously with the workers involved. The following article from the CBC gives a bit more detail about yesterday's solidarity rally. Generally speaking it is obvious that the vast majority of town residents have shown their support for the workers involved. No surprise there. Is this sufficient ? Of course not. The next rally should obviously take place in Winnipeg, in front of the Legislature. There should also be further effort in terms of a online campaign to pressure Tembec management to bargain in good faith.

Tembec, interestingly enough, was originally formed in 1973 via a sweetheart bailout deal of a mill in Témiscaming, Québec. It is presently headquartered in Montréal, and operates in France, Chile and the USA in addition to Canada. Despite much brouhaha about 'corporate responsibility' Tembec has shown little consideration for its workers over the years. See the Tembec Worker site for the story of one of it past actions in BC. I guess that it just goes to show that corporations that line up for government handouts will, in the end, behave just like any other corporation. Anyways, here's the story from the CBC.

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Residents walk with locked-out mill workers:
  Residents of the town of Pine Falls, Man., walked in solidarity Friday with 270 locked-out workers from the local paper mill, where the union says Tembec Inc. is pushing for a 35 per cent cut in wages and benefits.

Pine Falls is about 130 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.

The town put out a call to its citizens to support the workers, and the call was answered by hundreds of people, including elderly people in wheelchairs and a father pulling his young son in a wagon.

Clusters of people walked the 2.5-kilometre stretch of Main Street shoulder-to-shoulder with workers who have been on the picket line since Aug. 31.

Residents told CBC News the lockout doesn't just affect the employees. Several shop owners said their business is hurting and membership has dropped in local recreation programs.

Residents hope their show of solidarity will help end the lockout with the Montreal-based company and get the economy flowing once again.

On Thursday, the province appointed a mediator in an attempt to reach an agreement between the workers and management.

Manitoba Labour Minister Nancy Allan said Thursday that Michael Werier, a Winnipeg lawyer with experience in negotiation and arbitration, has been hired to try to resolve the nearly three-week-long lockout.

Werier has been asked to report on the progress of negotiations and settlement recommendations by Oct. 16.

Contract talks between the union and the company began Aug. 13, but the two sides have been unable to reach a collective agreement.

The company said Sept. 1 it needed an "immediate and significant reduction" in labour costs at the paper mill to keep it competitive in a radically changed market for newsprint.

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Tembec, however, is not the only forestry company that is either closing its doors or putting the squeeze on its workers, as the following item from the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada shows in terms of Abitibi Bowaters. Molly agrees with the urgency of the following call, but she disagrees with the proposed "solution" put forward by the CEP Union. As I have said before on this blog, the real long term solution is an expanded system of "community forests" and the cooperative processing plants that would go along with them. If government money is to be applied anywhere it should be to such a system rather than to private corporations. As noted above Tembec was the happy recipient of government largess at its founding, and the public value from that bailout has now been seen to be less than what might have been hoped for. As to Abitibi Bowater, well giving money to a local street gang would be a more rational move.

Given at least the medium term outlook for the Canadian lumber industry a community forest system that would perhaps be more geared to domestic consumption rather than export would indeed involve a certain amount of job loss amongst forestry workers. So, however, will the "accepted wisdom" of throwing more money at the forestry companies- assuming the USA allows such a thing under the Free Trade Agreement (an unlikely proposition). What the community/producer coop model of community forests would encourage, however, is a greater involvement of local workers and community members, an involvement that is far more likely to produce the magic "diversification" that conversation about this subject seems to eventually come down to. The CEP, like too much of Canadian labour, is mired in and tied to traditional solutions that have been shown over and over to be insufficient. It's time for a little imagination.

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MILL CLOSURES A DISASTER-CEP UNION:

OTTAWA -- AbitibiBowater’s closure announcements today at six Canadian mills “are disasters of historical proportions for communities that have been a mainstay of the Canadian forest industry,” said Dave Coles, president of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada.

The indefinite closures at three Canadian mills and paper machine closures at four other mills affect more than 1,500 CEP members in 11 CEP local unions.

Coles said that union members today are “angry with the company and cynical about their governments.”

“These closures were preventable,” he said. “The Canadian government had only to put in place a program of loan guarantees for forest companies forced into CCAA protection because of the credit crisis. But clearly, when it comes to our forest industry, nothing is too large to fail, and no economic disaster is too large for government to ignore.”

“The governments that have done nothing to prevent this, and that will do nothing today but offer meaningless platitudes about markets, have lost their moral right to govern,” said Coles.

The closures are also the “end game of AbitibiBowater’s corporate machinations and an attempt to build an empire based on debt,” said Coles. “This company exploited the forests to buy up productive companies, but failed to reinvest. Now workers and communities are paying the price.” (So do you throw more money at somebody who has already sharked you ?-Molly )

Coles said that the company will also use CCAA provisions to deny workers tens of thousands of dollars per person in severance pay that is owed and relegate them to the back of a line of creditors. “This is an ultimate humiliation and painful blow inflicted on our members because the Conservative government believes that bankers are more deserving than working Canadians.”(Uhh-Abitibi Bowater is not "bankrupt in total", merely certain mills. This says buckets about the laxity of the bankruptcy laws in this country- Molly )

“If this government has any decency it will follow the lead of Premier Williams in Newfoundland and pay the severance owing to these workers,” he said. (I'd also say apply the bill against corporate assets- Molly )

The union is demanding that federal-provincial task forces be established with union participation in each of the communities affected by the closures to ensure that the productive capacity of the closed mills is not destroyed and to look for new, responsible ownership. (Have I said the phrase "community forests" before on this blog- Molly )

“If given half a chance, Canadians will overcome the shock, anger and cynicism left behind by the AbitibiBowater announcements and struggle to rebuild the forest industry,” said Coles. “There is no alternative for Canada’s forest communities than the sustainable development and value added processing of our primary renewable natural resource.”

CANADIAN LABOUR-MANITOBA:

PINE FALLS LOCKOUT CONTINUES:

The lockout of about 300 employees on the part of Tembec in Pine Falls Manitoba has been going on since August 31 (see previous item on this blog). The demands of the company for wage and benefit concessions amounting to nearly 35% are, of course, outrageous, and since the dispute began management has basically been stonewalling and refusing any efforts on the part of the union to negotiate. The following item from the Winnipeg Free Press tells more about the present situation of the locked out workers and their community. It also gives news of other layoffs that are affecting the area.

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LAYOFFS, LOCKOUT BLOW TO EASTMAN REGION:

The loss of 42 more mining jobs near Lac du Bonnet is another body blow to a region already staggering from a two-week-old paper-plant lockout at Powerview-Pine Falls.

The latest round of cutbacks at the Tantalum Mining Corporation of Canada mine at Bernic Lake compounds the damage done when 38 other Tantalum Mine employees were laid off in April.

"It (the loss of 80 Tantalum jobs) is a huge blow," Harold Taylor, general manager of Eastman Regional Development Inc., said in an interview Monday, noting the mine is one of the area's biggest employers.

"The one hit, they can absorb, I would imagine. But a second one? No," he said. "That area doesn't have a lot of industrial jobs anyway, so to lose that diversity leaves the local economy weaker."

The layoffs, the latest of which took effect on Sept. 4, were ordered after adverse market conditions prompted Tanco to suspend the mining and production of both tantalum and spodumene concentrate at the Bernic Lake mine. The cutbacks leave only six underground workers at the mine, which is now producing only cesium.

Taylor said that part of the Eastman region was already hurting economically from the two-week old labour dispute at the Tembec paper-mill plant in nearby Powerview-Pine Falls.

Tembec, which is that town's largest employer, locked out nearly 300 unionized workers on Aug. 31 after they overwhelmingly rejected a proposal that union officials said called for wage and benefit concessions totalling about 35 per cent. There have been no contract talks held since then, and a spokesman for the workers' union -- local 303175 of the United Steelworkers -- said the union will likely decide today whether to ask Labour Minister Nancy Allan to appoint a mediator to try and break the stalemate.

John Valley, Tembec's executive vice-president of business development and corporate affairs, refused to comment Monday on whether the company would agree to the appointment of a mediator. He also declined to comment on the details of the company's demands, other than to say it needs to achieve immediate and significant reductions in its labour costs to improve the competitive position of the Powerview-Pine Falls plant. (It seems management is unlikely to say anything other than repeat its demands-Molly )

Meanwhile, the owners of two Powerview-Pine Falls businesses said Monday the Tembec lockout is taking a toll on many area businesses, including their own.

Ed Papineau, who co-owns Papineau Motors along with his brother, Ron, said their revenues are down about 20 per cent because of locked-out workers cancelling orders for things like new tires or non-essential repairs to their vehicles.

And Papineau fears it will get a lot worse if the dispute drags on for a long time -- a fear that is shared by Tonya Kemball, owner of the local Chicken Chef restaurant.

Although Kemball couldn't put a number on it, she said her restaurant has seen a significant decline in business volumes since the dispute began.

"Last week and this past weekend we really noticed it. It's just a scary situation all around."
Powerview-Pine Falls Mayor Ted Pichor said the impact on local businesses has been offset to some degree by the recent bout of warm weather, which has kept cottage owners coming to town to buy groceries and other supplies.

"But if it (the labour dispute) lasts a long time... it would definitely have an impact (on the town's economy)," the mayor said.

Kemball, whose husband, Daniel, works at the Tembec plant, said she remains hopeful the dispute won't drag on for too long. Taylor is also optimistic it will get resolved and the Tembec mill will also survive the current newsprint-industry crisis, which has seen the North American demand for newsprint plunge by 50 per cent since 2003.

But even if it does, Taylor said the latest woes at Tembec and Tantalum should serve as a wake-up call for local municipalities. He said they need to be a lot more proactive in trying to lure new industries to the area, which still hasn't recovered from the closure 11 years ago of the Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. research facility in Pinawa.

"That created a huge hole, and that's still the case," he said.

A spokesperson for Tantalum's parent company, Boston-based Cabot Corporation, could not be reached Monday for comment. ( I guess he drinks in the same bar as Tembec management-Molly )
murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

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MOLLY NOTES:

This is your classic David and Goliath story. The workers involved are few in number, reside in an isolated rural community and are facing an international corporation with far more resources to play a waiting game than they have. Their union, the United Steelworkers surely has more than enough on its plate right now with major disputes in Ontario and Newfoundland, and they can hardly be faulted for not going "over the top" in support for these workers. The Tembec workers are also over a barrel in others ways. While small the area is an actual community where people have put down roots. It's not a "lumber camp", and the people involved have been raising families in the town and have a significant amount to lose, perhaps enough that they may eventually see no other way than to cave in to the company's greedy demands.

There is, however, an alternative. It would be up to the members of local 303175 to initiate it themselves as the union leadership is preoccupied by other matters. Very few people outside of their local area are fully aware of the situation, and solidarity rallies in nearby cities (Winnipeg and North West Ontario) would do a lot to bring the public over to their side, especially as such rallies would see the support of many community members who are not members of the local. It would do wonders to convince the provincial government to actually pressure Tembec to come to the bargaining table.

Beyond that, however, there is the larger question of the situation of these almost one-industry towns. The latter paragraphs of the above article illustrate the problem very well, and it is a problem that many small industrial communities are facing nationwide. It is important that an area's economy be diverse enough to withstand either the misfortunes or the simple greed of one corporate employer. The situation is not as dire as it may seem for towns whose basic industry is forestry. Throughout the world there is a movement for 'Community Forests', forests that are owned and managed by community co-ops. These outfits have the interests of local residents more in mind than some industrial dinosaur, and they draw on a pool of local talent, initiative, ideas, community spirit and creativity of the sort that makes schools of business look like kindergartens. They furthermore create an economy whereby the revenue generated stays in the community, and the plans for development are much more integrated with the communities needs-including the issue of sustainability.

These are not some pipe dream. There may be hundreds of these co-ops worldwide, and there are many Canadian examples as well-The Revelstoke Community Forest Co-op, The Whistler-Squamish-Lil'wat Community Forest, The Harrop-Proctor Community Forest, the Acadian Forest Families, to mention just a few. When the present situation at Tembec is resolved, one way or the other, citizens and workers should begin to look at alternatives to the corporate control that places them is such a position of helpless jeopardy. Community Forests are the alternative to corporate lumber giants.