=
APPENDIX
A
=
(March
2004 N.E. Meeting)
Welcome
to the fourth national executive meeting of my term as president. I feel this is an appropriate time=
to
review with you the accomplishments we have made together in the interest of
our membership and the tasks that lie ahead.
At
my first meeting as national president, I told you that I wanted us to work
together - that I wanted all of the national executive to keep their eyes on
our common goal - serving the membership of this union. From my perspective, this NE=
is
working much better. We have
debated issues, and tried not to debate personalities. We have made decisions together an=
d have
moved our organization forward. I
want to reiterate my willingness to continue to work with each and every on=
e of
you on issues.
We
have worked together on issues facing our members but, as always, more rema=
ins
to be done. Much of that work is connected to communication. For example, t=
here
is a view, held by portions of our members, that sees the National Office a=
s a
source of solutions to any and all problems. We need to communicate our mes=
sage
effectively: the union succeeds where all levels – local, regional and
national – make their fair contribution. If a local has a problem, ot=
her
levels of the union stand ready to help – but only where the local has
already taken steps to deal with it. There are exceptions, of course, but t=
he
general rule is: those closest to the problem tackle it first.”
We
also need to communicate more effectively with our locals so that the entire
union can be mobilized to deal with major issues. There is no better exampl=
e of
this than the current need to mobilize a strong Yes vote to support our
bargaining teams.
In
view of the many communication needs facing the union, I made improvements =
in
this area a priority. The union had to listen more carefully to its members=
and
the members needed to see their concerns reflected more clearly in the
activities of their union.
To
meet these communication needs, the creation of the new national website was
essential. Before the new site was established, a constant complaint I hear=
d,
from one end of the country to the other, was that the old site did not pro=
vide
the information members needed and it was difficult to use. The comments I =
hear
are now the opposite: members tell me they like the new look and logo, they
like the information provided and they like the discussion boards –
either as participants or observers.
Further
improvements to the site are coming. We are introducing an interactive even=
ts
calendar that will permit locals, committees and other groups in the union =
to
post their events. We are also able to set up discussion forums as a working
tool for committees whose members are spread across the country. Only membe=
rs
of the committees will have access to these forums so that discussions can
remain private. This facilitates cooperation and union building at a very l=
ow
cost.
Our
communication with the membership must improve and will improve. Members who
can communicate with each other effectively can work with each other effect=
ively.
This is what it’s all about.
Right
after convention, we initiated a campaign to improve the term policy and to
protect our existing term population. A number of regions were qui=
te
active in support of their terms. Unfortunately the campaign did not alter =
the
term policy but, in my view, our willingness to take on the issue ensured t=
hat
terms were extended. The empl=
oyer
knew that fighting CEIU over the non-extension of term employees was not wo=
rth
the trouble and so risk-managed some term employees. However, in a number of regions, t=
hat
seems to have changed and terms are being let go within weeks of achieving
their 3 years of service. I w=
ould
challenge you, as national leaders, to be vigilant about terms in your regi=
ons
and help organize activities to ensure that no term within sight of
indeterminate status remains without union support.
My
second task was to ensure that our locals are fully supported by their
union. To that end, I am prop=
osing
a plan for building locals to both the orientation committee and the nation=
al
executive at this meeting. Be=
cause
locals are the backbone of our union, we must ensure that the stewards in t=
hose
locals have the skills, the tools and the resources necessary for their job=
of
representation at the local level.
We will continue to train our local officers in their function but we
need this new initiative to support our stewards throughout the union.
At
the convention, the delegates committed CEIU to a campaign against
contracting-out and privatization. &n=
bsp;
I am proposing a plan for this campaign that will be put before you =
at
this meeting. To face
this threat to the jobs of our
members successfully, we must work together. Every department, every region, ev=
ery
member has been affected in some way by contracting-out and we must not fai=
l in
our challenge to it.
At
this point in my term, events have altered our agenda. Collective bargaining has to move =
to the
forefront, government restructuring raises questions for our union and the
imminent federal election poses many concerns for our members.
Our
bargaining teams face an intransigent employer but are remaining true to the
needs of our members. As a
component president on the national strategy committee, I can tell you (and
Sister Barb Hall of CEIU will support me on this) that PSAC is hearing the
ideas and contributions of CEIU and that we are moving towards a good contr=
act
- whether Treasury Board likes it or not!
To support our teams, the national CEIU has taken steps to raise the profile of bargaining with our members. = In early February, we did a mailing to each and every member on the bargaining themes. The discussion boards= on the website have hosted a number of debates on subjects such as the main is= sues in this round, the behaviour of the employer and actions that can be taken = to support our bargaining teams. Local meetings and bargaining conferences where I have been in attendance have convinced me that CEIU’s membership is ready to win a good contract.<= o:p>
We
are embarking on a strike vote. We
must succeed with this vote - and that means a massive ‘Yes’
vote. I have authorized $50,0=
00 for
NVPs to use to visit locals in their regions to rally a strong YES vote.
CEIU
can’t just have a good strike vote - we need a massive vote and we ne=
ed
to work with the PSAC and other components to ensure that overall there is a
massive yes. After 13 years o=
f job
cuts, poor raises and difficult working conditions, our members need a good
contract. And we must deliver=
that.
The announcement by the government of yet another reorganization in December has generated uncertainty and concern for many members. HRDC has split and some of our mem= bers are in HRSD and some are in SD. In CIC, members stayed in CIC, members went to CBSA and members were left in limbo. We have worked with those members from CIC who have been left in limbo. We canvassed our membe= rship in the POE to find out what they wanted.&n= bsp; When the employer refused to consult with us on the issue, we went to the Prime Minister and demanded consultation. The employer phoned me in the even= ing the letter was delivered. At = 8;30 - and said, how about meeting with us tomorrow, please. We were able to put forward our members’ position. We a= re meeting regularly with CIC about other aspects of the divisions within that department and posting regular updates on the website. It is a difficult time for these m= embers but we are active in representing them and their concerns to the employer.<= o:p>
Along
with concerns about where members may work are concerns about union
representation. Speculation h=
as run
in many directions about what the PSAC may do, might do or ought to do. The PSAC board of directors has me=
t and
discussed this subject. At th=
is time,
with the final shape of the government still unclear and with the final sha=
pe
of many jobs still unclear. T=
he
Alliance has decided that it is premature to carry this discussion very far=
. In
the meantime, the current com=
ponent
representation remains in place.
While
I have no intention of criticizing any other PSAC component union, I will s=
ay
that CEIU is and will remain an excellent choice for members. We have made it that way and we in=
tend
to ensure it remains an excellent choice for members. We are the only component with an
extensive support structure. =
Both
senior elected officers and staff offer the assistance that members require=
and
they are backed by the significant resources we have assigned to this
work. We provide what so many
members want - effective help, leadership and support when they need it.
Speculation
is rampant in Ottawa and across the country that we are looking at an elect=
ion
this year - perhaps as early as June.
This will obviously disrupt our bargaining timetable. But we must continue to keep barga=
ining
in the minds of our members and we must aggressively promote public services
and their importance during the campaign itself. In our discussion of the fed=
eral
election, I will be proposing that moneys be provided to locals to particip=
ate
in the campaign and to support candidates who both have a chance to be elec=
ted
and will work to protect the public service in Ottawa. We want friends in Parliament - not
those who are our friends in opposition or on the campaign trail only.
I
look back on my time as your national president with some satisfaction with
what we have accomplished to date but I recognize that much much more needs=
to
be done. So let us roll up our
sleeves, get to work at this meeting and make CEIU an even better choice for
our members.
In
solidarity,
Jeannette
Meunier-McKay
National
President
CEIU