Month: September 2013

Martin Regg Cohn, who writes on political affairs for The Toronto Star, penned a couple of articles in recent months critical of Ontario PC Party Leader Tim Hudak and his anti-union plans for the province. Click here for his article in The Hamilton Spectator. Click here for his article in The Toronto Star.      

Martin Regg Cohn, who writes on political affairs for The Toronto Star, penned a couple of articles in recent months critical of Ontario PC Party Leader Tim Hudak and his anti-union plans for the province.

Click here for his article in The Hamilton Spectator.

Click here for his article in The Toronto Star.

 

 

 

Local 793 members need to become better informed and more politically active in order to fend off the right-wing policies being proposed by the provincial and federal Conservatives, business manager Mike Gallagher told a general membership meeting Sept. 22. “We’ve got to get together to weather the storm that’s coming,” he said. “We need to reach out to people, even if they’re not part of a union, to realize the threat facing them.” Gallagher said both Prime Minister Stephen Harper and provincial Conservative Party leader Tim Hudak have got it […]

Local 793 members need to become better informed and more politically active in order to fend off the right-wing policies being proposed by the provincial and federal Conservatives, business manager Mike Gallagher told a general membership meeting Sept. 22.

“We’ve got to get together to weather the storm that’s coming,” he said. “We need to reach out to people, even if they’re not part of a union, to realize the threat facing them.”

Gallagher said both Prime Minister Stephen Harper and provincial Conservative Party leader Tim Hudak have got it wrong in trying to bring in right-to-work (RTW) legislation, and for proof one only has to look to the U.S. to see how such laws have impacted that country.

He said both the federal and provincial Conservatives have a knack of making their anti-union laws sound appealing and a good idea.

However, he said, RTW legislation would mean individuals could opt out of paying union dues and erode the ability of unions like the Operating Engineers to provide good pension and benefit plans.

It is “absolute fiction” that RTW legislation is about helping people, he said, noting they are really laws that have been given to politicians by corporations.

Gallagher said wages have decreased in U.S. states where RTW legislation has been introduced and, given time, it will destroy unions.

If Hudak has his way, Gallagher noted, he will turn Ontario into a RTW province.

“Nothing is more serious than Hudak winning an election,” he said.

He noted that Hudak’s only way of getting support is by attacking unions.

Union officers are trying to make the union better, Gallagher said, but “with the stroke of a pen” Hudak could send unions back to the days before the RAND formula was implemented.

He said Canadian locals and members must wake up and fight back against RTW legislation, much like unions have done in the U.S.

He noted that IUOE Local 150 recently overturned RTW legislation in Indiana and locals in Canada should learn from that.

“We have to be as vigilant as the U.S. locals.”

He also called on national union organizations like the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) and national building trades office to step up their efforts to combat RTW legislation.

“We need the CLC and the building trades nationally to wake up and mobilize workers. We have to wake up to the imminent threat that is on our border.”

During the meeting, Gallagher showed a video that was made by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union. The video depicted what’s happening in some U.S. states that have RTW legislation.

Afterwards, Gallagher said there is no case that can be made for RTW legislation.

“We have to make sure that’s not the reality going forward.”

Prior to 2012, individuals who were receiving the CPP retirement benefit and later returned to work could no longer contribute to the CPP plan, regardless of their age. Starting in 2012 and to reflect Canadians are working longer, the “Post-Retirement Benefit” (PRB) was introduced.  Contributions to the new PRB will produce a lifetime benefit that is separate from CPP retirement benefits and will be payable the year following the year you make contributions.  The amount of PRB will be based on your age, level of earnings and the amount of […]

Prior to 2012, individuals who were receiving the CPP retirement benefit and later returned to work could no longer contribute to the CPP plan, regardless of their age.

Starting in 2012 and to reflect Canadians are working longer, the “Post-Retirement Benefit” (PRB) was introduced.  Contributions to the new PRB will produce a lifetime benefit that is separate from CPP retirement benefits and will be payable the year following the year you make contributions.  The amount of PRB will be based on your age, level of earnings and the amount of contributions made during the previous year.  If you would like to get a rough estimate of how PRB contributions will impact your future retirement benefit payments the government of Canada has developed a PRB calculator on the Service Canada website.

Effective January 1, 2012 individuals between 60 and 64 who are working and receiving a CPP retirement benefit must now make mandatory contributions to the plan, with matching contributions from the employer.

Individuals age 65 but under 70 who are earning income and CPP retirement pension can either choose to make CPP contributions, resulting in a PRB, or opt out of making these contributions by way of an election.  If an individual chooses to make the contributions, their employer must contribute their share also.

Individuals can elect to stop paying CPP premiums anytime after they turn age 65 by completing Form CPT30 – Election to Stop Contributing to the Canada Pension Plan, or Revocation of a Prior Election and giving a copy of the election form to their current employer and filing the original form with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).  The election to stop contributing to the CPP takes effect on the first day of the month following the date the completed form is provided to the employer.    It is important to note that once an election is made, either to opt out of paying CPP premiums or to revoke a previous election, you cannot make another election until the next calendar year.

Click here to view Form CPT30

Local 793 business manager Mike Gallagher has been presented with the 2012 Roy A. Phinnemore Award for his contributions to improving health and safety in Ontario’s construction industry. The award was presented at the annual general meeting of the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA) on Sept. 18 in Mississauga. IHSA president and CEO Al Beattie and Local 793 president Joe Redshaw, who is co-chair of the IHSA board of directors, presented the award to Gallagher. Redshaw told the audience that Gallagher, who was president of the Construction Safety Association […]

Local 793 business manager Mike Gallagher has been presented with the 2012 Roy A. Phinnemore Award for his contributions to improving health and safety in Ontario’s construction industry.

The award was presented at the annual general meeting of the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA) on Sept. 18 in Mississauga.

IHSA president and CEO Al Beattie and Local 793 president Joe Redshaw, who is co-chair of the IHSA board of directors, presented the award to Gallagher.

Redshaw told the audience that Gallagher, who was president of the Construction Safety Association of Ontario in 2005, is deserving of the award because he has been very active in promoting worker safety and has led many initiatives to make worksites safer.

After accepting the award, Gallagher thanked the IHSA, noting it’s a “tremendous privilege” to receive such an honour.

In his remarks, Gallagher called on stakeholders at the meeting, as well as the IHSA and the province to do more to protect young workers in Ontario’s construction and other industries.

“The message I’d like to leave you with is that we’ve got to look after our young people. Young people, when they’re starting out, are vulnerable workers and they need our help.

“We want to attract young people but let’s give them the tools they need to be successful and the proper training that they need to do the job safely and well.”

Gallagher said young workers in Ontario have 50 lost-time injuries every day.

“That comes to more than 18,000 workers, young people that are under the age of 25 that get injured when they go out to work in the province of Ontario, so I really want to call upon you and the association and the Ontario government to step it up and fix that problem because that’s not right.”

He encouraged stakeholders, the IHSA and the province to provide better entry-level training for young workers.

“I call upon you to do more and that includes me and my group. We’ve got to do more to make sure young people can go and do the job and have a healthy career throughout their lives.”

Gallagher noted that a prevention council has been set up under chief prevention officer George Gritziotis, but more time, money and manpower should be devoted to accident prevention.

“I would call upon that prevention council to become more aggressive, be more active.”

Gallagher’s father, the late Gerry Gallagher, founder of Local 183 of the Labourers’ union, was posthumously awarded the Phinnemore award in 1993.

The Pipe Line Contractors Association of Canada (PLCAC) has a new student bursary program. The program provides financial assistance to sons or daughters of parents who derive their principal income from pipeline construction. To qualify, the parent or guardian of the applicant must be employed by or have a history of employment with a company that is a member of the PLCAC. The applicant must be enrolled full-time in a program leading to a diploma or degree in any field at a recognized Canadian college or university. Applications received from […]

The Pipe Line Contractors Association of Canada (PLCAC) has a new student bursary program.

The program provides financial assistance to sons or daughters of parents who derive their principal income from pipeline construction.

To qualify, the parent or guardian of the applicant must be employed by or have a history of employment with a company that is a member of the PLCAC.

The applicant must be enrolled full-time in a program leading to a diploma or degree in any field at a recognized Canadian college or university. Applications received from students enrolled in post-graduate programs may also be considered.

Applicants must provide:

• A completed application form
• Official school transcript and proof of enrolment

The application for this year must be received by Oct. 31, 2013.

Application forms can be accessed through the PLCAC website at www.pipeline.ca.

For more information about the new program, please contact Michael Gallardo, PLCAC assistant executive director, at 905-847-9383, ext. 215, or by email at mgallardo@pipeline.ca.

Click here for more information.

The following statement was issued by IUOE General President James T. Callahan on the victory by Local 150 over Indiana’s right-to-work laws. Brothers and Sisters: I am pleased to share some good news in the ongoing fight against so called “right-to-work” laws that we have been waging in several states. In a decision issued Monday (Sept. 8), Judge John M. Sedia of Indiana’s Lake Superior Court declared Indiana’s right-to-work law unconstitutional. The ruling was the latest development in a lawsuit filed by IUOE Local 150. Local 150’s lawsuit argued that […]

The following statement was issued by IUOE General President James T. Callahan on the victory by Local 150 over Indiana’s right-to-work laws.

Brothers and Sisters:

I am pleased to share some good news in the ongoing fight against so called “right-to-work” laws that we have been waging in several states.

In a decision issued Monday (Sept. 8), Judge John M. Sedia of Indiana’s Lake Superior Court declared Indiana’s right-to-work law unconstitutional. The ruling was the latest development in a lawsuit filed by IUOE Local 150.

Local 150’s lawsuit argued that Indiana’s right-to-work law is unconstitutional because it makes it illegal for unions to collect fees for services that they are federally required to provide.

Judge Sedia agreed, stating that under Indiana’s right-to-work law, “it becomes a criminal offence for a union to receive just compensation for particular services federal law demands it provide to employees.”

Judge Sedia concluded that, “the court therefore has no choice but to find that (the laws) violate Article 1, Section 21 of the Indiana Constitution.”

Following the judge’s ruling, Local 150 business manager and IUOE vice-president James M. Sweeney summed things up with the following statement:

“This is a victory for the middle class. These laws are nothing but thinly-veiled tools to weaken unions, and this is a big win for workers who rely on unions to provide decent wages and benefits. We pledged on the day that this law was passed that they hadn’t seen the last of us, and we are delighted with this ruling.”

I had the honor and pleasure of announcing the news from the floor of the AFL-CIO Convention (recently) in Los Angeles. Thousands of delegates, representing every union in the labour federation, immediately stood with a thundering ovation upon hearing the news. That ovation and all due credit goes to Jim Sweeney and his staff for their tireless and unwavering work.

This is a huge victory for our union and for all working people in Indiana and beyond. The fight continues, but we will build on this victory and we will fight on.

Congratulations to everyone at Local 150. Well done.

Click here to read the decision.

Click here to read the press release from IUOE Local 150

 

All Local 793 members are reminded that a general membership meeting of the union is scheduled for Sunday, September 22, 2013 in the Operating Engineers banquet hall, 2245 Speers Road, Oakville. The meeting begins at 10 a.m. Click here for a map.  

All Local 793 members are reminded that a general membership meeting of the union is scheduled for Sunday, September 22, 2013 in the Operating Engineers banquet hall, 2245 Speers Road, Oakville. The meeting begins at 10 a.m.

Click here for a map.

 

Local 793 members are advised that the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA) has issued two advisories. One of the advisories deals with quick couplers. The other advisory deals with boom extensions (jibs) detaching from mobile cranes. Click here for the advisory on quick couplers. Click here for the advisory on boom extensions.  

Local 793 members are advised that the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA) has issued two advisories. One of the advisories deals with quick couplers. The other advisory deals with boom extensions (jibs) detaching from mobile cranes.

Click here for the advisory on quick couplers.

Click here for the advisory on boom extensions.

 

Andrew Jackson, a professor of social justice at York University and senior policy adviser to the Broadbent Institute, indicates in an opinion piece in The Globe & Mail that right-to-work laws are no solution to manufacturing job woes. Click here to see the story.

Andrew Jackson, a professor of social justice at York University and senior policy adviser to the Broadbent Institute, indicates in an opinion piece in The Globe & Mail that right-to-work laws are no solution to manufacturing job woes.

Click here to see the story.