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Information Bulletin #5

Sisters and Brothers,

Negotiations with the Company continued this week via Zoom. The Union and the Company have finished exchanging proposals and completed negotiations of the non-monetary demands. Due to the provincial lockdown we will continue to meet via Zoom next week and begin monetary discussions. The Committee will keep you updated as the process unfolds.

In Solidarity,

Your Bargaining Committee

Building Back Better in 2021

By Jerry Dias

At the beginning of the pandemic, Unifor made two broad demands of government.

The first was to protect public health and ensure all workers had access to sick leave and immediate income assistance. The second was to build an economic stimulus package big and bold enough to speed Canadas economic recovery and build the Canada so many of us believe is possible.

Unifor mourns Sheila Yakovishin, PSW in Windsor LTC home, lost to COVID-19

WINDSOR – Unifor, its Local 2458, and the wider Windsor community began the New Year in mourning of health care worker and fellow union member Sheila Yakovishin, 60.

“On behalf of our union, I express the deepest condolences to Sheila’s family and all those who knew and loved her. Unifor mourns with you, as we decry her preventable death,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President.

Airline industry needs additional financial support given new COVID-19 tests requirement

TORONTO – Unifor renews demands on the federal government to provide financial support for the airline industry as the industry prepares for all international travelers to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test on arrival.

"Yesterday's announcement is important to protect the public safety of all Canadians, but at the same time, the federal government's continued refusal to provide adequate financial support for the 300,000 airline workers puts the very future of Canada's airline industry in jeopardy," said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President.

Unifor welcomes offshore funding for workers

ST. JOHN’S—Unifor says the joint federal and provincial efforts to secure funding for Canada’s East Coast offshore oil industry should help protect good jobs.

The governments announced this morning that Hibernia Management and Development Company Ltd. will receive $38M in funding from the Oil and Gas Industry Recovery Assistance Fund.

Unifor calls on provincial government to assume control of Windsor-area long-term care home

WINDSOR— Staffing levels at The Village of St. Clair are below crisis levels and action is demanded from the provincial government, says Unifor.

“This is a matter of life or death,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “The current owners of The Village of St. Clair are no longer capable of providing the necessary care. The Government of Ontario must step in.”

Unifor has written to Premier Ford to ask that his government to take over control of the long-term care home’s operation.

Unifor and Aleafia Health partner on groundbreaking medical cannabis coverage

December 18, 2020

TORONTO – Unifor, Canada's largest private-sector union and Aleafia Health Inc. (TSX: AH, OTC: ALEAF),  have entered a long term partnership that through collective bargaining will seek to provide access for its members to medical cannabis coverage as part of their benefit and insurance coverage.

RailLine Volume 7, Issue 12 - Bargaining Update

Bargaining Update: Friday, December 18, 2020

 

 

Members,

This past week, your bargaining committees met VIA Rail at the table, and showed a strong, unified face.

Both groups address the employer’s monetary proposals in detail, with our shared goals and individual needs.

Talks progressed slowly, and major issues continue to stand in the way of a mutual agreement.

Statement: Migrants Day Statement

The issues facing migrants around the world are now posed in new and dangerous ways by the COVID-19 pandemic which has disrupted migration patterns and locked down migrants working as front line service and care providers. 

READ THE FULL STATEMENT HERE

Sobeys Kincardine workers achieve wage and benefit gains in new contract

KINCARDINE– Sobeys grocery store workers in Kincardine, Ontario have voted to ratify a new collective agreement that achieves gains, including wage increases, schedule improvements, and benefit gains.

"Unifor continues to make strides in raising working conditions in retail work across the country, which is more important than ever during the COVID-19 era,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. “There is still much work to be done to address low wages and precarious work in this sector and this remains a priority for our union.”

Ontario long-term care staffing timeline lacks urgency

TORONTO – Unifor welcomes the Ontario government's long-term care staffing plan to establish an average of four hours of direct care for long-term care residents but remains concerned on its implementation timeline.

Letter to Premier Ford re: Rapid Testing at Airports

December 15, 2020


Honourable Doug Ford, Office of the Premier
Legislative Building, Queen’s Park
Toronto, ON M7A 1A1

sent via e-mail: @email

Dear Premier Ford,

I was pleased to read of your support for the addition of rapid testing to the safe and healthy border control measures here in Ontario.

Lack of PPE for health workers contributes to outbreak at Windsor long-term care home

December 15, 2020

WINDSOR – A lack of access to PPEs at The Village at St. Clair, a long-term care facility, has contributed to an outbreak of COVID-19 cases.

“The Ontario Government made it clear that all health care workers will have access to proper PPE including N-95,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “This outbreak is evidence of a blatant disregard of the directive and the safety of residents and workers.”

There are currently 48 confirmed cases among the 256 residents at the facility and 25 among its staff.