Month: June 2013

There have been some changes to the schedule of district meetings for the summer months. Please check the list below for dates and times. TIMMINS 54 Waterloo Rd., Unit 2, Timmins, 8 p.m., 1st Wednesday of the month. Ph: 705-675-8643 Note: July and August meetings are still scheduled. OSHAWA 1255 Terwillegar Ave., Unit 7, Oshawa, 7 p.m., 1st Thursday of the month. Ph: 905-720-0480 Note: July and August meetings are suspended. THUNDER BAY* 107 Johnson Ave., Boardroom, Thunder Bay, 8 p.m., 1st Thursday of the month. Ph: 807-344-7612 Note: July […]

There have been some changes to the schedule of district meetings for the summer months. Please check the list below for dates and times.

TIMMINS
54 Waterloo Rd., Unit 2, Timmins, 8 p.m., 1st Wednesday of the month. Ph: 705-675-8643
Note: July and August meetings are still scheduled.

OSHAWA
1255 Terwillegar Ave., Unit 7, Oshawa, 7 p.m., 1st Thursday of the month. Ph: 905-720-0480
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

THUNDER BAY*
107 Johnson Ave., Boardroom, Thunder Bay, 8 p.m., 1st Thursday of the month. Ph: 807-344-7612
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

ST. CATHARINES*
188 Bunting Rd., Unit 5, St. Catharines, 7:30 p.m., 2nd Tuesday of the month. Ph: 905-227-8211
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

WINDSOR*
3383 Walker Rd., Windsor, 7 p.m., 2nd Tuesday of the month. Ph: 519-250-8877
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

SAULT STE. MARIE*
71 Black Rd., Unit 7, Sault Ste. Marie, 7:30 p.m., 2nd Wednesday of the month. Ph: 705-949-6860
Note: July and August meetings are still scheduled.

KITCHENER*
100 Sheldon Dr., Unit 10, Cambridge, 7:30 p.m., 2nd Wednesday of the month. Ph: 519-621-6344
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

SUDBURY*
430 Westmount Ave., Unit H, Sudbury, 8 p.m., 3rd Tuesday of the month. Ph: 705-675-8643
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

TORONTO*
2245 Speers Rd., Oakville, 7:30 p.m., 3rd Wednesday of the month. Ph: 905-469-9299 or Toll Free: 1-877-793-4863
Note: July and August meetings are suspended. Meeting time has been moved to 7:30 p.m. from 8:00 p.m.

BELLEVILLE*
43 Pine St., Belleville, 7 p.m., 4th Tuesday of the month. Ph: 613-968-3363
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

LONDON*
523 First St., London, 7 p.m., 4th Tuesday of the month. Ph: 519-451-7430
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

HAMILTON*
35 Goderich Rd., Unit 5, Hamilton, 7:30 p.m., 4th Wednesday of the month. Ph: 905-544-1851
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

OTTAWA*
Best Western Macies Hotel, Ottawa, 1274 Carling Ave., 7 p.m., 4th Wednesday of the month. Ph: 613-228-1759
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

NORTH BAY
Voyager Inn, Greenery Room, 123 Delaware Ave., North Bay, 8 p.m., 4th Wednesday of the month. Ph: 705-675-8643
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

BARRIE*
240 Bayview Dr., Unit 15, Barrie, 8 p.m., 4th Thursday of the month. Ph: 705-734-2494
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

SARNIA*
1390A Lougar Ave., Sarnia, 7 p.m., 4th Thursday of the month. Ph: 519-337-2053
Note: July and August meetings are suspended.

* District hiring hall present

 

The federal government is falling short on training the next generation of Canadians, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau told an audience in Local 793’s banquet hall in Oakville on June 20. “I feel that this current government is going in the wrong direction in its training program,” he said. “The federal government has to make sure Canadians have the skills to do the jobs that are out there. We need to have a pan-Canadian conversation on that.” Trudeau was at the Gary O’Neill Learning Centre adjacent to Local 793’s head office […]

The federal government is falling short on training the next generation of Canadians, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau told an audience in Local 793’s banquet hall in Oakville on June 20.

“I feel that this current government is going in the wrong direction in its training program,” he said. “The federal government has to make sure Canadians have the skills to do the jobs that are out there. We need to have a pan-Canadian conversation on that.”

Trudeau was at the Gary O’Neill Learning Centre adjacent to Local 793’s head office to meet union officers, staff and apprentices and learn more about the training campus. Inside, he spent time on virtual reality simulators. Outside, he tried his hand at the controls of a crawler crane, all under the careful supervision of an OETIO instructor, of course.

In the banquet hall, Local 793 business manager Mike Gallagher introduced Trudeau to the audience and thanked him for visiting the training centre.

“I am very happy to have you here to meet with some of our apprentices and talk about what we need to do going forward.”

Gallagher noted that the union and its contractor partners have invested a lot of money in training and “it absolutely works.”

He told the audience that the Operating Engineers are committed to training and building the country.

“From our perspective, we are interested in partnerships, we are interested in building this province, we are interested in bringing people together and building a great nation.”

In his remarks to the audience, Trudeau criticized the federal government’s approach to training issues, noting that far too many young people today end up dropping out of programs because of financial difficulties or because they don’t have a clear path to employment.

He noted the labour force is more mobile now and the federal government should be in the business of making sure that Canadians have the skills necessary to do the jobs that are out there.

“That’s why we have to have a Canadian conversation about how we’re making sure that those people in the workforce now and those who are heading towards the workforce right out of high school are given the opportunity to contribute,” he told the audience.

Trudeau said the federal government must pay more attention to training young people because jobs of the future will require more skills.

“If we know that in the coming years seven out of 10 jobs that are created are going to require some form of post-secondary education, whether it be university, trade schools or skills diplomas, certification programs or apprenticeships, we need to make sure that the achievement of training and post-secondary education of all sorts happens.”

Trudeau said he’s extremely sensitive to the fact that education is an area of provincial authority, and he is not going to “bust in” to the province’s jurisdiction, but he noted it’s important that the federal government build partnerships and work with the provinces to ensure young people are trained.

After Trudeau’s speech, business manager Gallagher asked what the Liberal leader would do to change the channel and get on with business if he’s elected.

Trudeau replied that he’s spent six months talking to people across the country and that has given him a good handle on what they want.

He also said he’s disclosed his personal financial details “above and beyond” what’s required in an effort to earn the trust of Canadians.

The current government, meanwhile, said Trudeau, is more focused on wielding power than helping Canadians.

On another note, business manager Gallagher told Trudeau that the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) is “essentially a failed government policy” and that First Nations communities have young people who can be trained for jobs, but the government allows companies to bring in foreign workers.

“It’s not fair,” Gallagher said.

Trudeau agreed with the assessment, noting the TFWP “is a program that’s become so badly managed.”

Afterwards, Trudeau took questions from the media.

He said Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised to be transparent and competent but has failed on both counts.

“They bring down a veil of secrecy on everything they do,” he said. “Canadians deserve better than this current gang in office.”

Special called ratification vote meetings have been called for Thursday, June 27, 2013 for Local 793 members currently working under the Greater Toronto Sewer and Watermain Collective Agreement and also the Provincial Utility Contractors Collective Agreement. Both meetings begin at 8 p.m. and are being held in the banquet hall at Local 793’s head office in Oakville. Click here for the official meeting notice on the Greater Toronto Sewer and Watermain Collective Agreement. Click here for the official meeting notice on the Provincial Utility Contractors Collective Agreement.  

Special called ratification vote meetings have been called for Thursday, June 27, 2013 for Local 793 members currently working under the Greater Toronto Sewer and Watermain Collective Agreement and also the Provincial Utility Contractors Collective Agreement. Both meetings begin at 8 p.m. and are being held in the banquet hall at Local 793’s head office in Oakville.

Click here for the official meeting notice on the Greater Toronto Sewer and Watermain Collective Agreement.

Click here for the official meeting notice on the Provincial Utility Contractors Collective Agreement.

 

Premier Kathleen Wynne says she wants to work with contractors and unions to build Ontario and make the province a better place to live. “We need to build this province up together,” she told an audience attending a Liberal Party fundraiser in Local 793’s banquet hall in Oakville on June 13. “I want to work with you, your sector, to solve the province’s problems. We need to build on our strengths and your industry is a big part of that.” Wynne, just two days removed from passing her first budget […]

Premier Kathleen Wynne says she wants to work with contractors and unions to build Ontario and make the province a better place to live.

“We need to build this province up together,” she told an audience attending a Liberal Party fundraiser in Local 793’s banquet hall in Oakville on June 13.

“I want to work with you, your sector, to solve the province’s problems. We need to build on our strengths and your industry is a big part of that.”

Wynne, just two days removed from passing her first budget as premier, was keynote speaker at the event. More than 250 people attended the fundraiser sponsored by Local 793, including five cabinet ministers, representatives of a number of contractor groups, and union leaders.

The premier received standing ovations both before and after she spoke, signaling that she’s on the right track.

Wynne said her vision is to build up the province and improve infrastructure, especially transit.

The government, she noted, is pumping more than $35 billion into infrastructure over the next three years, with $13.5 billion of that to be invested in the coming year on building and improving roads, transit and municipal projects.

Meanwhile, she told the audience, the government is spending $870 million on the TTC subway line extension to York University and into Vaughan, and millions more on an extension of Highway 407.

“It’s about preparing Ontario for the future,” she said.

Wynne said the government wants to ease congestion facing the Toronto and Hamilton areas and invest in infrastructure projects that have lagged.

The province is also committed to making worksites safer and has taken a number of steps to make that happen, the premier said, including doubling the number of enforcement officers, establishing a chief prevention officer, and developing an occupational health and safety strategy to guide the government in the years ahead.

Wynne said the government is also committed to reviewing the procurement policies of Infrastructure Ontario to ensure the apprenticeship system is being strengthened.

Importantly, she said, the government also wants to get more young people into the trades.

“We need them to have the skills for today’s marketplace.”

Local 793 business manager Mike Gallagher provided closing remarks at the event and noted that it’s time for Ontarians to focus on building a better province.

“It’s time for us in Ontario to change the channel and get down to the business of making a better society for our families and our kids,” he said. “We need to roll up our sleeves and build the infrastructure that needs to be built.”

Gallagher said Ontarians shouldn’t forget the lessons learned from the debacle of the so-called Common Sense Revolution that came to the province under former Premier Mike Harris.

Harris promised to cut red tape and lower costs for business, he said, but “what we really got at the end of the day was Walkerton and Maple Leaf Foods.”

Healthcare also suffered under the Harris government, noted Gallagher, as hospitals were left without enough nurses to staff the rooms.

Gallagher said the province can’t afford to repeat the mistakes that were made in the past.

He said the Liberals have done more in the last 10 years than the PCs ever did, noting that 18 hospitals are being built in the province by unionized trades.

Gallagher also said the Liberals learn from their mistakes and, despite the cost, cancelled power plants in Oakville and Mississauga when it became clear the people didn’t want them.

The Conservatives, meanwhile, lost a lot more when they gave away Highway 407 in 1999 to a foreign consortium for $3.1 billion, he noted, because it cost the province $104 billion to purchase all the right-of-ways for the thoroughfare.

The consortium that owns the highway made $52 million in the first quarter of 2013 alone, he said.

Also at the event:

• Local 793 president Joe Redshaw was master of ceremonies.
• Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn introduced the premier and thanked Local 793 for hosting the event.
• Joseph Mancinelli, international vice president and regional manager for the Central and Eastern Canada area of LIUNA, thanked Wynne for her remarks.
• Scotty Newlands, who sings the anthems at Toronto Maple Leaf home games, sang O Canada.
• Reverend Gill provided the invocation.

Provincial cabinet ministers at the event included:

• Finance Minister Charles Sousa
• Labour Minister Yasir Naqvi
• Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Glen Murray
• Economic Development, Trade and Employment Minister Dr. Eric Hoskins
• Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Linda Jeffrey