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Unions are often judged – by members and non-members – in terms of their members’ "voice". In the workplace, the union provides the collective voice for negotiation and the resolution of conflict. Politically, "voice" refers to discussion and participation in the democratic process, both within the union and the community.

By joining the United Steelworkers, members have an opportunity to use their voice in the workplace and in politics.

Good collective agreements improve the lives of working people and their families. They can also improve the standard of living for others within a community. The United Steelworkers represents 180,000 members in over 1,700 workplaces, in hundreds of communities across Canada. We bargain collective agreements that make a real difference in people’s lives.

In addition to collective bargaining, politics also affects our working lives. Laws control a worker’s legal right to form unions, bargain collectively, and take work action. Improvements to the laws governing hours of work, overtime, minimum wage, maternity and parental leave, health and safety, pensions, and harassment have improved our lives. The key in achieving these gains was electing representatives who put the rights of workers ahead of corporate interests.

Politics is about power: who exercises the power, and on behalf of whom.

Our union’s political activism - both nonpartisan and partisan - lies at the heart of building a better future. We must search for ways and means to better represent the interests of our membership at both the bargaining table and at the different levels of government.

The United Steelworkers has a proud tradition of initiating progressive changes at the bargaining table. Whether it’s wages, pensions, benefits, working conditions or the right-to-refuse unsafe work, our union has pioneered new approaches.

We will need to redouble our efforts to challenge employers who are bent on taking away our hard fought gains.

Over the years, our union’s political activism has included lobbying governments and elected representatives, endorsing candidates running for office, and supporting political parties that share our social democratic values.

The labour movement has successfully elected governments that have introduced worker-friendly legislation like the right to strike, anti-scab provisions, health and safety protection, Medicare, unemployment insurance, anti-discrimination and anti-harassment laws, parental leave, employment equity, and much more. We achieved these gains in partnership with other progressive groups and social movements dedicated to building a just society.

The labour movement needs to re-establish a strong progressive presence in our political system.

Our members, their families and our communities need to renew their faith in what government can accomplish on their behalf. Our members and activists must recover their sense of political awareness and activism. We must reconnect our members with the issues that affect them, and demand accountability from representatives who seek our support.

A key step is to re-establish a two-way communications process in developing our policies and getting political support for them. We need to do this through better contact with our members through whatever means are available, including e-mail, telephone, fax, mail and the internet.

We must also build and participate in coalitions to promote our issues at all levels of government. Electing municipal representatives who support our objectives must become one of our main objectives.

At the provincial, territorial and federal levels, we must continue to lobby governments for legislation that reflects our union’s priorities. The key to our political success will be to demonstrate widespread membership support for the proposed changes and continued pressure on federal and provincial legislators.

The presence of a viable political alternative will also force governments to address our concerns and introduce more balanced legislation.

The Steelworkers helped establish the New Democratic Party of Canada (NDP), and has supported it over the years through local union affiliations, national office financial assistance and the release of staff and activists to work on election campaigns. At the same time in Quebec, we have supported political parties that share our vision and goals.

It is more important now than ever to concentrate our efforts on building support for our political allies within the hearts and minds of our members. Recent federal legislation prohibiting corporate and union donations to political parties means parties like the NDP are even more dependent on individuals and membership drives to sustain the party’s work. We must do what we can to promote the value our membership has actually received from the union’s long affiliation with the NDP.

1. Organize the unorganized. Our union must continue to work with community partners to reach out to women, young workers and people of colour, building on our strengths and expanding our base.

2. Strengthen existing international alliances with other unions and develop new partnerships.

3. Utilize our union’s existing industry sector councils and develop new ones in key sectors of our membership.

4. Work with our members, local unions and area councils through a new Local Union E-mail Initiative, and integrate it with the Steelworkers website and intranet site. This initiative will help us build our capacity to undertake effective community campaigning and on-the-job canvasses. It will also allow us to build strong coalitions within communities.

5. Identify, recruit and train union activists to run for public office at all levels of government. Special emphasis should be placed on involving youth activists.

6. Support the establishment of local union political action committees (PAC), and create a network of local union and area council political action coordinators who will assist with membership education, organizing, and campaign management.

7. Involve our retired members in the political process by developing an electronic database of the Steelworker Organization of Active Retirees (SOAR) membership, and form a communications network.

8. Use the Steelworkers Legislative Office in Ottawa to develop a Parliamentary Intern Program and a network of Steelworker parliamentary lobbyists.