1 SEPTEMBER 2010 – Labour Day Message: Foreign Investment must be a True Net Benefit for Canadian Workers and Communities – by Stephen Hunt
BURNABY, BC - As we go into this holiday weekend United Steelworkers will once again be enjoying Labour Day celebrations. It will be a time of rest and relaxation for many of us across the District – a time to get together with family, friends and community members.N Our members are stitched together in a patchwork of resource industries, manufacturing plants, transportation and service industries. They form the backbone of our economy and communities. More and more our members and others have connected the dots between strong resource-sector jobs, vibrant manufacturing industries, transportation and service sector employment – both in the public and private sectors – and the economic and social well being of their communities. ...... more

26 APRIL 2010 – On this Day of Mourning we will be Honouring the Memory of Lyle Hewer and Many Others – by Stephen Hunt
This week’s April 28 Day of Mourning ceremonies across our district and across Canada will see Steelworker members joining thousands of others in commemorating the lives of our fellow workers who have been killed and injured on the job. It’s a regular annual event where family members, fellow workers, employers, government officials, regulators, community members and others gather to pay respects to those killed and injured in the workplace. In the labour movement we use the motto: “Mourn for the Dead – Fight for the Living.” That’s a motto that has held up over time and is very appropriate: we remember those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice and vow to carry on the fight to protect millions of workers who continue to face workplace hazards everyday....... more

22 DECEMBER 2009 – There Were Many Bright Spots in 2009: a Year Filled With Hard Times for Many Workers – by Stephen Hunt
As the 2009 calendar year comes to a close, I would like to send thanks to all of our rank and file members, our local union reps, district staff representatives, and all the support staff out there, who have done a remarkable job for the Steelworkers in Western Canada, during a very difficult year for many. I’d also like to thank our national and international officers and staff who have assisted us over the year in representing our members. Without the combined efforts of our larger union, we would not be as effective as we have been....... more

3 SEPTEMBER 2009 – Let’s Celebrate Labour Day and Continue to Fight to Protect Our Hard-Won Gains - by Stephen Hunt
This Labour Day weekend will take place in tough economic times for many USW members who have been affected by permanent closures, indefinite shutdowns and extended periods of layoffs. Many feel there is little to celebrate during the current economic crisis that has hit our members and communities so hard. After all, it’s tough to feel there is something to celebrate when there is no cheque coming in or you are facing the end of your EI benefits. Over 15,000 USW members in our district are facing a lean Labor Day weekend. At the same time much of our working membership is under attack by employers who are trying to chisel away at provisions of existing collective agreements or use the “C” word – concessions, during contract talks....... more

5 MAY 2009 – We are Counting on Our Members to Help Carole James and the NDP Take Back BC - by Stephen Hunt
There’s only one week to go before the BC Provincial Election on May 12, 2009. By all accounts it is a close race that will either change the direction of British Columbia or keep it on a steady course to more job losses and growing poverty and inequity. We are optimistic and convinced that Carole James and the BC New Democrats can win and change the course that our province has been on for the past eight years. I urge all United Steelworkers members to do all they can to assist the NDP candidates in their constituencies defeat the Gordon Campbell Liberals. We are counting on our members to help bring the NDP to victory....... more

9 JANUARY 2009 – Steelworkers Continue to Step Forward as the Winds of Political Change Get Stronger - by Stephen Hunt
I hope that you had a peaceful and restful holiday with your families and friends. For many the holidays include times of reflection over the events that have taken place during the past year and a time to make resolutions for the coming year. For many of our members the 2008 holiday season was the toughest one to face since the recessionary years of the early 90s. In 2008 we saw the rapid onset of a global economic meltdown. The recession that had already hit our members in the forest industry got worse. And other sectors where our members are employed, especially those in manufacturing, mining and minerals, began to go into a downturn. But just as last year brought a collapse of economic pillars employing most of our members, there was a huge political reawakening in North America. The voting population is connecting the dots between the economic mess that we are in with right wing politicians and their failed ideologies....... more

29 AUGUST 2008 – Let’s Remember that Labour Day is Our Day of Celebration and Activism - by Stephen Hunt
For many Canadians the first Monday in September marks the end of summer, a time for barbecues, picnics and family get-togethers. But for many trade unionists Labour Day also signifies that it’s time to get together to celebrate the achievements of organized labour and renew our commitment in the ongoing fight for economic and social justice. On September 3, 1872 Canada’s first Prime Minister, John A. McDonald, passed a law that made the formation of trade unions no longer a criminal conspiracy in the five year old Dominion of Canada. Seven trade unions went to Ottawa prior to that to protest against the conspiracy law. They marched outside McDonald’s house to make their point and they got through to the PM. Although Labour Day was established by law in Canada in 1894, trade unions were behind it all along. There would have been no Labour Day without the presence of trade unions in our country....... more

31 JULY 2008 – There’s Plenty Happening in Our District This Summer with Major Negotiations and Other Activities - by Stephen Hunt
Summer is buzzing along and although it means vacation time for many, our District has remained quite busy with various activities. Some of our major local unions in the resource sectors have been in or remain in negotiations. We also continue to forge ahead to lead positive structural changes in our district. And our Political Action Program is already getting warmed up for the BC General Election in May 2009....... more

29 JANUARY 2008 – What is Needed to Stop Killing and Maiming our Forest Workers – by Stephen Hunt
On Dec. 5, 2005, Steelworkers hosted the B.C. Forest Fatalities Summit in response to the rising tide of injury and death in the provincial forest sector. We brought together industry regulators, company executives, cabinet ministers, Opposition MLAs, forest workers and the media to understand why so many forest workers were dying on the job. By year's end, the tally reached an astounding 43 deaths. This summer, 7,000 Coastal workers struck for four months, largely because they were sick of long and dangerous shifts. A 2004 government-imposed contract forced workers to travel or work up to 16 hours a day, so employers were given an opportunity to order almost any shift that fit into an average of 40 hours per week. ...... more

19 DECEMBER 2007 - Job Losses tell the Story that Government Inaction is Not Acceptable - by Steve Hunt
As 2007 comes to an end, several of our locals are dealing with a list of permanent forest industry closures and indefinite closures and layoffs. For many of our members, Christmas will be met with much less cheer as their jobs have vanished or are disappearing - mostly permanently. But before I comment on that and what’s happening in one BC coastal local in particular, I want to thank all of our local union presidents, activists, staff representatives and support staff for the work you have done for our district over the past 12 months....... more

31 AUGUST 2007 - This Labour Day Think About What You Have and Support Your Union - by Steve Hunt
For many people in the labour movement Labour Day is more significant than most statutory holidays. It’s also an occasion to be with our families and with our colleagues in the labour movement to reflect what has happened over the past year. This Labour Day I encourage all District 3 Steelworkers, wherever you may be, to think seriously about what you have and what the labour movement means to you today. What does it mean to you in terms of wages and benefits and what does it mean to you in terms of the lifestyle you have gained? What has it meant to you in terms of job security? And what has it meant to your family in terms of fighting for the programs your family relies on and cares about: like public Medicare, education and social services?...... more

11 JULY 2007 – No Wonder Coast Workers are Skeptical – by Steve Hunt
The coast forest industry is on the brink of a labour dispute. To understand why, think back to 2003. In the middle of negotiations with their employees, the CEOs of the three biggest coastal forest companies launched a public relations campaign. They traveled the coast distributing glossy brochures promising a billion dollars in investments over 10 years, job security, new mills and stable communities....... more

11 MAY 2007 - Our Union is the Glue that Holds the BC Forest Industry Together ~ By Steve Hunt
The BC forest industry is dominated by a series of major licensees that are becoming larger and more powerful. A blitzkrieg of government-blessed mergers and acquisitions has seen to this. And, the industry is being allowed to run without any direction by a provincial government that is completely lost at sea over the industry’s future – not having a clue how to fix it. ...... more

12 JANUARY 2007 - New year will bring our union new challenges as corporations further globalize - by Steve Hunt
I'd like to take this opportunity to wish the membership of our district a safe and prosperous 2007. As most of us have returned from our holidays and are back at the grindstone, it's time to further prepare for the challenges and opportunities we have ahead of us. ...... more

28 SEPTEMBER 2006 - We Have to Organize and Grow to Build Our Union
(posted 28 September 2006)When your District 3 Conference meets in Winnipeg next week we will be discussing a district Action Plan. That plan will include how we intend to tackle Collective Bargaining, Health and Safety, Education, Organizing and several other programs and policies....... more

1 SEPTEMBER 2006 - Our Building Power Agenda is Even More Relevant during this Era of Increasing Corporate Globalization
(posted 1 September 2006) As we approach Labour Day 2006, the future of thousands of Steelworkers families across Western Canada are becoming affected by the recent rash of corporate mergers and takeovers. The big corporate fish are eating the fish which we once thought were too big already – and working people, their families and communities are the meat in the sandwich. ...... more

24 JULY 2006 - Harper Rolls the Dice on Softwood Lumber Agreements with George Bush
(posted 24 July 2006) Stephen Harper is playing the worst kind of brinksmanship politics with Canada's forest industry. The Harper-Bush softwood lumber agreement, signed on July 1 in Geneva – the day after the last draft to was sent to lumber interests – stands as is, says Canada's minority PM. ...... more

14 JUNE 2006 - It's a Summer for Our District to Remain Active
As we head into the summer months we can take stock in some of our many achievements this past spring and look forward to a very active summertime in collective bargaining and organizing work. I'll mention just some of these items here....... more

26 APRIL 2006 - Being Sad is Not Enough for Labour's Day of Mourning
As we gather together this April 28, Labour's Day of Mourning, to commemorate workers who have paid the ultimate price, there can be no greater honour that we can pay to our fallen brothers and sisters than for us to console their families, remember their life and times and remain unchanged in our determination to fight for the living....... more

26 MARCH 2006 -It's a Year to Build More Power and Solidarity
As we make further headway into 2006, it’s time to take stock in some of the things that have taken place in our District and stoke up our Building Power agenda for the rest of this year....... more