Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

Sisters, Brothers, Comrades

Yes! There will be a Workers Out! Conference in Montreal in July 2006!

The first World Outgames 2006 will be held in Montreal, Québec, Canada from July 29-August 5, 2006. An integral part of the Outgames is an International Conference on the theme «The Right to be Different».

The organizers of the Outgames plan to make the event “an important contribution to the advancement of the rights and freedoms of gay communities” worldwide and they are including an International Conference as a central part of the cultural, sporting and political events being planned.

Workers Out! Making The Difference will be held in conjunction with the International Conference and we are planning our time so that trade unionists can participate in both the International Conference and Workers Out Conference.

Here’s how it will work.

Workers Out will begin with an opening plenary on July 26, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. We will join the Opening Reception of the International Conference at 6:30 p.m. followed by the Official Opening Dinner at 8:00 p.m.

The next three days will be a combination of workshops and plenaries. During this time, Workers Out will hold our workshops, which will be advertized in the general Conference information as Workers Out workshops. We will also organize a Workers Out Final Plenary on Friday, July 28 at 5:30 p.m.

Based on discussions in Amsterdam and Sydney, we are proposing that Workers Out 2006 concentrate on developing an international strategic plan to ensure that our unions worldwide take up the struggle for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights in the workplace and in the broader society. The Canada/Quebec organizing committee is committed to developing and circulating a Draft Plan of Action in advance for comment and for discussion and final adoption during our Conference.

The workshops we are proposing build towards the development of understanding issues facing our sisters and brothers around the world, of an analysis of methods of organizing used to advance LGBT issues, of an appreciation of the international structures within which we work and a series of goals and strategies to further our international movement’s work to end discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Here are our preliminary suggestions. We welcome comments and further suggestions.

Proposed workshop topics

1. The Role of Trade Unions in Bringing About Social Change on LGBT Issues;
2. Union Action on LGBT Issues: Dos and Donts ;
3. Confronting Homophobia and Transphobia in the Workplace;
4. Transgender Rights in the Workplace;
5. Lesbian Workers’ Issues: What Unions Need to Do;
6. Young LGBT Workers: Issues And Unions’ Roles;
7. The Structures of our International Union Movement: Where to Move Forward on LGBT Rights;
8. Building Links Internationally: Connecting Human Rights, LGBT and Union Movements;
9. Aids and Discrimination in the Workplace;
10. Education Workers: Issues of Sexual Diversity in the Education System.

Registration

Registration for Workers Out 2006: Making The Difference is part of your registration for the International Conference. This should be done online at: under the Conference section.

Registration is:

• $375 Canadian before December 31, 2004
• $450 Canadian between January 1, 2005 - April 30, 2006
• $525 Canadian between May 1, 2006 - July 1, 2006

Registration includes:

• admission to the International Conference
• free admission to the 1st World Outgames Opening Ceremony
• one metro/bus pass
• $100 CAD discount off the regular Sports/Cultural registration fee
• participant information kit which includes maps, program, souvenir poster and Montreal and Québec tourist brochures
• 20% discount on the official Outgames souvenir book

Registration includes lunches. Child care will also be provided. Organizations can reserve and pay for a number of places during the registration period and send in the names of the individuals attending at a later date.

Sponsorships

We are working with the Outgames organizers and with unions in Canada to set up a sponsorship program for trade unionists from the South. It is our goal to make Workers Out 2006 as representational as possible. We will send more information on this issue as soon as we can.

Workers Out 2006: Making the Difference is being organized by labour centrals in Canada and Québec: they are the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ), Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), Canadian Labour Congress (CLC/CTC), and Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec (FTQ).