News

Labour Day 2021 is COMING SOON to a Drive-In Theatre NEAR YOU!

Last minute updates (see below for basic information)...

Just a few updates for the Labour Day Tailgate...

• Only ONE vehicle is allowed in between the pole markers at the drive-in. During non-pandemic times, they squeeze in two.
• The snack bar will be open but, due to COVID, will only take debit, credit cards, or pre-arranged coupons. Please NO CASH!
• Enter the snack bar at the North End and exit at the South End.
• You must be masked to enter the snack bar!
• We will have a few speeches starting at 12:15 p.m.. We will have a speaker playing the speeches live near the snack bar, but everyone will be able to listen to the them on the Starlite's Screen ONE FM frequency. Make sure you check the frequency when you come in. It's posted around the venue.
• Drive-in washrooms will be open.
• General announcements will also be made over the FM frequency.
• We will have a Labour Council tent set up near the snack bar. If there are any questions during the event, please pop by.

AND an added Caravan Update...

• If we exceed the parking in the lower parking lot of City Hall, we have confirmed access to the upper parking lot behind City Hall for overflow. If we really exceed our numbers, a second over flow lot will be the lot behind Central Public School (across the street from the back of City Hall).
• WE WILL HAVE A CHARTERED HSR BUS from the City Hall to the Drive-In. It will leave City Hall at the end of the Caravan and return to City Hall for 2 p.m.. If you are coming on the bus, it is advisable to bring a folding lawn chair as there is limited seating outside of vehicles at the drive-in.

9 June 2021

Hamilton & District Labour Council joins the growing call for Trustee Carole Paikin-Miller to resign and calls for the HWDSB to defend employees who call out racism.

At its May general meeting representatives from dozens of unions covering thousands of workers in the Hamilton area voted to call for the resignation of Paikin-Miller and called on the school board to stop the intimidation of those calling out racism.

Trustee Paikin-Miller made a complaint that Hamilton and District Labour Council President Anthony Marco, who is also a school board employee, was harassing her by calling out her racist behaviour on Labour Council social media sites. The complaint, like a similar prior anonymous one, was found to have no merit and President Marco was cleared of any wrongdoing. However, an independent investigation found that Paikin-Miller herself engaged in racist behavior, both towards a student trustee and at a school board meeting in June 2020.

HDLC has a proud track record of fighting against racism and has never shied away from calling out those in power for racism. That a Trustee would try and silence a Labour Council president from speaking out is very troubling.

That the school board wasted time and resources to investigate this speaks to the hollowness of HWDSB’s commitment to “calling out racism and oppression.” As an employer Paikin-Miller has shown that she is prepared to abuse avenues designed to support and help workers facing harassment against school board employees and those who stand up to racism. Such actions can only have a chilling effect on any board employee who stands up to racism at work.

On behalf of its members, the executive of the Hamilton District Labour Council unanimously calls for Carole Paikin-Miller to resign her position. We are one of many Hamilton organisations committed to racial justice calling for her resignation. There is no room for elected officials and employers to engage in racist behaviour or to attempt to silence those who speak out.

The executive also expresses its profound disappointment that the HWDSB would initiate an investigation of an employee for actions taken in their capacity as the President of the HDLC. We are also profoundly disappointed that the HWDSB would entertain the idea that calling out racism is a form of “harassment”.

We ask that the HWDSB publicly reaffirm its policy of supporting employees who call out racist behaviour by their employer.

For media inquiries, please contact Ritch Whyman, Executive Member-At-Large, at [email protected]

The Hamilton and District Labour Council is moving forward with a digital organizing strategy to help candidates who pledge to end poverty and eliminate systemic racism and oppression in our city, with a focus on all three levels of government. We will be advocating for good jobs with (at least) a living wage, benefits, pensions, and better working conditions for all.

We need your help to positively impact our city as much as possible. It's time we united to Elect Change for the better!

GO TO www.electchange.ca now and join us!

We have partnered with Cable 14 to broadcast this year's Day of Mourning Ceremony!

If you are a cable subscriber, you can watch on Channel 14 on your television at the listed dates and times below OR at any time after that, you can watch ON DEMAND by logging into the Cable 14 website with your cable subscription login information.

If you are NOT a cable subscriber, you can watch at any of the times below at the following link: https://cable14now.com/live-streams/

It will just be like watching a YouTube video.

Here are the broadcast dates and times:

Apr 28, 2021 - 11:00:00
Apr 28, 2021 - 18:00:00
Apr 29, 2021 - 12:00:00
May 01, 2021 - 19:00:00
May 02, 2021 - 16:00:00
May 02, 2021 - 22:30:00

We have, historically, celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) in the Hamilton Region for many years, not only to mark the many accomplishments of women and commemorate their struggles and achievements throughout history, but also to help those women who are presently experiencing domestic violence and hardships.

The HDLC will be continuing its work this year to ensure EVERY Hamilton worker INCLUDING STUDENTS receives at least a living wage of $16.45/hr.

Student workers are currently the ONLY group of City of Hamilton employees not making a living wage. We do plan initiatives to work to EVERYONE across the entire workforce in the city making at least a living wage, but we feel the City of Hamilton is an important step to help us do so.

Many Councillors think student jobs are just for "beer money" and that it's "socialist" to have students valued for their work. We disagree. Living Wage is a poverty line wage; minimum wage is below poverty.

In response to an announcement from the CLC National Office last week which endorsed former MP and Finance Minister, Bill Morneau, for the leadership of the OECD, the Executive of the Hamilton and District Labour Council felt it incumbent to clarify our position on the endorsement.

Click here to sign HDLC's living wage petition