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Hamilton and District Labour Council
2010 Labour Day Parade and Picnic Information and Lineup Available Here
Aug. 13, 2010
Take Action on Bill 68: door open for employers to pay workers less than earned
Aug. 9, 2010
New contact information for Labour Studies
Jul. 20, 2010
Georgetti says good news on jobs undercut by losses in manufacturing sector
Jul. 9, 2010
Welcome
Greetings!
This is the on-line home of the labour movement in Hamilton. Browse here to learn about the Labour Council and the important contributions that working folk and their unions make to our city.
The Hamilton and District Labour Council meets on the third Thursday of the month at 7:30 p.m. at the USW Centre, 1031 Barton Street East. (There is no meeting in July. The regular business meeting in December occurs on the second Thursday.)
Next Meeting: September 16, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.
Labour Council meetings are open to the public. Visitors are welcome!
Check here for the most recent news and information from Labour Council and look at our calendar for upcoming meetings, labour-related and labour-supported events.
Affiliates can view and print credential forms and per capita payment forms here .
AT ECP in Brantford, use of scabs strectches strike into 3rd year
On Monday, August 23rd, a contingent from Hamilton joined with members of USW Local 1-500 and the Brantford and District Labour Council to mark the second anniversay of the start of a strike against ECP. The company has used scabs to operate the plant during the strike while demanding significant concessions from the workers, fueling anger and bitterness in the community. Prior to the picket line rally, senior labour and community leaders met to discuss ways to bring this dispute to an end. Workers at the company's plant in British Columbia successfully negotiated a new collective agreement without a strike or lockout. Why the difference? In BC, it is illegal to use scabs to steal work from workers on strike. In Dalton McGuinty's Ontario, scabs are welcomed. ECP is a perfect example of why anti-scab legislation is needed this province. The Hamilton and District Labour Council urges everyone to support the workers at ECP in every way possible, including writing to the Premier and your local MPP demanding that the government enact anti-scab legislation now.
To see a short video produced by Brother Mike Williams that features strikers and others talking about ECP and the need for an anti-scab law, click here.
Message to the G20: People First!
Mary Long, President of the Hamilton and District Labour Council, marches at the G20 protest rally in Toronto on June 26. Maternal health was a major issue brought to the G8 table by Canada. It is important, said the women who lead the march down University Avenue, to address all ways to make sure that mothers are safe and healthy.
New! To view G20 rally and march video produced by Mike Williams, 2nd vice president of the Hamilton and District Labour Council, click here.
Oppose the Police Tactics at the G8-G20 protests, says Rolf Gerstenberger
Local 1005 congratulates its members and pensioners who participated in protests against the agendas of the G8 and G20 in Toronto last week, especially in the Saturday Day of Action. So too we congratulate the members of the Hamilton unions and, most importantly, the youth from our city who together with thousands of others courageously defied the campaign of fear which sought to persuade them not to take a stand against the G8/G20 agendas and in defence of their right to protest and express their views. Read more.
OFL President Sid Ryan comments in the Toronto Star: Thousands stood up for humanity
Last Saturday, more than 30,000 people — much higher than media estimates — from across Ontario joined the People First rally in Toronto during the G20 Summit. Our message was clear: we told world leaders — including our own Prime Minister Stephen Harper — to put the needs of human beings and the environment ahead of all other considerations as they deliberated over the weekend.
The rally organizers, including the Ontario Federation of Labour, worked diligently to ensure that our democratic right to lawful assembly would be respected, and that citizens could participate in a safe and peaceful event. Read more.
Statement by CLC President Ken Georgetti on vandalism at the G20 summit
The Canadian Labour Congress abhors the behaviour of a small group of people who have committed vandalism and destroyed property in activities related to the G20 summit in Toronto.
The CLC, in conjunction with a number of other groups, including the Ontario Federation of Labour, the Council of Canadians, Greenpeace, Oxfam, and the Canadian Federation of Students, organized a peaceful demonstration in Toronto on Saturday which attracted 30,000 people. We cooperated with police in choosing the route and had hundreds of parade marshals to maintain order. Read more.
Labour Day – September 6, 2010
Planning is underway for the annual Labour Day parade and picnic on Monday, September 6th. Registration forms for a spot in the parade, bbq locations and advance food orders have been distributed to affiliates. The parade line-up is posted here. For further information, contact Labour Council at 905-547-2944 or hdlc@cogeco.net.
Ottawa rally shows support for striking workers in Sudbury
Hamilton and District Labour Council president Mary Long travelled to Ottawa on May 27, 2010, joining with members of USW Local 1005 and other workers from the Hamilton area, to support the 3000 members of USW Local 6500 in Sudbury on stike against multi-national giant Vale Inco. The members of Local 6200 in Port Colborne, who negotiate jointly with Local 6500, are also on strike against the same employer. The key issues in the dispute are pensions, the nickel price bonus and transfer rights.
All Out on May Day!
Labour Council president Mary Long joins OFL president Sid Ryan and Local 1005 president Rolf Gerstenberger in leading a march of workers and solidarity partners through Hamilton's downtown on May 1st.
Workers and families commemorate the National Day of Mourning for workers who have been killed, or suffer injury or disease.
APRIL 28, 2010
Mary Long, president of the Hamilton and District Labour Council, addresses those gathered at the workers' monument on the grounds of City Hall to commemorate the Day of Mourning, April 28, 2010.
Bill Mahoney, a retiree from USW Local 1005 recites a poem that he wrote in remembrance of those who have died on the job or from occupational diseases.
Glenn Greene conducts a smudging ceremony to honour the dead and injured.
View the slideshow produced by the Hamilton Spectator
Still not Healthy – Still not Safe
Workers & Activists Demand: Make Change Now!
OUR PENSIONS ARE UNDER ATTACK
Canadian Labour Congress and the Congress of Union Retirees of Canada Action Plan to Improve Retirement Security
Today pensions are at risk. Many of today's retirees face the problem of loss of, or reduction in their pensions when their firms go bankrupt; others lost much of their personal or defined contribution plans in the stock market melt down. Tomorrow's retirees face even greater challenges. For many of them, the old advertising slogan Freedom 55 has turned into the revised hope of Freedom 75.
It is time to speak up for secure pensions. Workers should not have to "fend for themselves" in retirement. All Canadians deserve security and dignity in retirement.
Original artwork by Regan Turner (SEIU)
Labour Day 2009 in Hamilton on YouTube
Watch some of the Labour Day parade.
Join the picnic at Dundurn Park.
See the festivities at Fix Our World.
The Hamilton and District Labour Council thanks affiliated and non-affiliated unions, community partners, volunteers, bands, musicians, artists, Labour Community Services (United Way), local service providers, the City of Hamilton and its staff for making the Labour Day Parade and Picnic successful again in 2009.
Activism for Change
Fix EI. Protect Pensions. Buy Local. Buy Canadian!
BUY LOCAL! BUY ONTARIO! BUY CANADIAN!
In September 2008, Labour Council asked the City of Hamilton to adopt a policy that put local workers, local products and local suppliers at the centre of local government's purchasing decisions. On May 11th, City Council, meeting in Committee of the Whole, referred back to staff a report that recommended against including local and Canadian preferences in the city's procurement policy for more work and consultation with stakeholders. Labour Council is vigorously pursuing this matter and will press school boards, colleges, universities and hospitals to adopt similar polices. (See article in the Hamilton Mountain News and article in the Hamilton Spectator.)
Council considers buy-Canadian policy - The Hamilton Spectator, May 12, 2009
Canadian mayors pass anti-'Buy American' resolution - CBC, June 7, 2009
"Communities are best able to set their own economic priorities and achieve economic security when most of their basic needs are met by local businesses that employ local labour and use local resources to meet the needs of local residents for employment, goods, and services." - David C. Korten, Agenda for a New Economy: From Phantom Wealth to Real Wealth (San Francisco: Barrett-Koehler, 2009), 128.
A JOURNEY FOR JOBS ... A JOURNEY FOR JUSTICE
It's about good jobs, secure pensions, accessible EI and the dignity of workers!
For information on labour's proposals to stimulate the economy and the response of the Canadian Labour Congress to the federal budget, click here. TOGETHER IT WORKS is the OFL's proposal for an economic plan that works for everyone.
Viewthe response of Labour Council to the federal budget.
Labour Council president reacts to news of more job losses in Hamilton.Laid-off mom has politicians teary-eyed - The Hamilton Spectator
Steel City Workers Take Action - from The Hamilton Spectator
Watch the Jobs First march from the convention centre to the federal building (March 21, 2009).
Andrea Horwath and Dave Christopherson speak out for workers and their families.
Hamilton City Council backs EI reforms.
For a recap of the OFL's DRV2WRK caravan's trek around Ontario, go to www.drivetowork.ca.
Two-day labour campout seeks to give city's jobless human face - from The Hamilton Mountain News
The caravan in Hamilton on June 23rd and 24th: listen to the stories here.
Canadian Labour Congress - Online Newsletters
