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An international discussion at the World Peace Forum in Vancouver featured panelists Cristina Ercoli, from the teachers' union in Argentina; George Heyman of the BC Government and Service Employees' Union; and Antonio Garica from Section 22 of the Mexican Teachers' Union in Oaxaca. The panel was moderated by David Chudnovsky, the MLA for Vancouver-Kensington and former President of the BC Teachers' Federation.

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Originally posted by Ward:
I agree with George Heyman of the BC Government and Service Employees' Union. The objective of unions today should be to engage the individual non-unionized worker not just sign up a new group.

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Are industrial unions satisfied with their agreements or are they more or less toeing the line due to the threat their members face from competition due to globalisation?

Extremists such as Sid Ryan are busy agitating in international causes while ignoring Canadian issues such as the plight of First Nations on their own doorstep.

Ken Georgetti doggedly keeps attempting to raise the profile of a very important issue for union and non-union workers.That issue is pension legislation that protects worker's pensions from attack by corporations and corporate bankruptcies. Nobody cares.

I agree with talking to individual workers and trying to win the hearts and minds rather than just their dues. However, is the existing model of the labour movement built to do that? Most processes to settle grievances, and even in some unions negotiating itself, happens largely over the head of rank and file workers.

Trade unions could have a major influence in shaping the political future in Canada by consolidating support for a just and honest form of government.

Given that the elite controlled old line parties rule Canada with only +/-40% of the vote, unions can play an important role in consolidationg and focussing the goals of the majority of Canadians.

We remain in minority government mode because Canadians want none of the parties.

If unions can help to move political discrouse leftwards, the union movement will reap the benefits. Politicized workers are more likely to fight to unionize their workplaces. Those same workers are also more likely to support pro-union politicians at the ballot box. The ballot box is crucial, because so long as the bourgeoisie remains in government they can bring the power of the state to bear against unions. Only by taking power can the working class truly push back against the capitalist offensive to lower wages and working conditions to third world levels for large swaths of the working class.

[ 31 July 2006: Message edited by: Left Turn ]

There is a certain inherent radicalism in the day to day to experiences of work, and the relationships workers build in resisting the bosses is very important. Herding workers off to the ballot box looses much of this. I think the real strength of labour activism is taking the radicalism that is generated on the shop floor and organising from there.

The retail gripes in another thread are a perfect illustration of what I'm talking about.

Also as much as some in the labour movement may wish to look out for Canadians first, that outlook is exactly what is worst for Canadians. After all almost all of us work for corporations owned by the wealthy the world over, borders are largely meaningless to business. Nationalism is not a luxury we can afford, to neglect organising workers just because they live somewhere else is just as silly as neglecting to organise workers just because they are in another department from you.

[ 01 August 2006: Message edited by: wobbly ]

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Originally posted by Left Turn:
I think unions have a role to play in terms of shifting the political dabate leftwards.
[ 31 July 2006: Message edited by: Left Turn ]

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What works? (at least here)

Informing the members of EVERYTHING that goes on, good or bad.

Engaging the members as stewards, health and safety reps, and making sure that they are the ones making the decisions.

Performing my function as a full time Union rep as an advisor rather than the fixer of every problem that comes along.

Empowering the workers to change their workplace, rather than telling them to sit back and watch the Union work.

Making the saying 'This is YOUR Union' a fact instead of a fancy phrase.

Making sure that the Union runs from the bottom up instead of from the top down.

Education on political choices impacting the daily work life. For example, many of the workers who are new Canadians voted for the Liberals because they 'brought us to Canada'. After getting the shaft from the provincial Tories during negotiations and the first time they tried to strike, they started asking political questions. The NDP picked up 5000 new votes in the last federal election (losing to the Tories by a mere 20000 votes) due in large part to this education. Now there are a lot of NDP members, and even some Communists and a sprinkling of Anarchists. This from a group that a year and a half ago could have given two craps about politics. Also, every couple of weeks someone brings in a petition to the Union office for some worthy national or even international cause, and we invariably get a few hundred signatures on it just from the workers who drop into the office.