Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

OTTAWA - After pressuring past governments for decades to provide real protection for whistleblowers, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) is concerned the government’s new Accountability Act may not go far enough.

“On the surface it appears that this legislation will offer more protection against reprisals for all workers in the federal public sector who come forward to make a disclosure of wrongdoing,” said PSAC National President Nycole Turmel.

“We will be undertaking a thorough analysis of the proposed legislation,” Turmel added. PSAC has applied and is expected to be invited to testify to the House Committee that will hear presentations on the legislation.

|inline

As an important member benefit, the Public Service Alliance of Canada provides members with $5,000 of life insurance plus $5,000 of accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance absolutely free through the PSAC For Life program. Coughlin & Associates, the insurer, also offers PSAC Enhanced life insurance.

Starting next week, PSAC members will have an opportunity to update their PSAC Enhanced life insurance coverage and enter their names to win one of 20 gift certificates worth $1,000 each from Canadian Tire. With PSAC Enhanced coverage, PSAC members can now own as much as $ 250,000 of life insurance protection for as long as age 70. It’s an important product improvement that can ensure that our members have the financial security they need, even after age 65.

In addition to the chance of winning their choice of some fabulous gifts from Canadian Tire, PSAC members can also support justice, simply by completing a PSAC Enhanced coverage application. For every application received, $5 will be donated to the PSAC Social Justice Fund.

For details and an application form, visit coughlin.ca/psac-afpc/

Yellowknife – Workers at Canada ’s first diamond mine are on strike Friday, April 7 after BHP Billiton refused to negotiate a fair first collective agreement, says the Public Service Alliance of Canada, the union representing 400 workers at the Ekati diamond mine.

Jean-François Des Lauriers, Regional Executive Vice-President for PSAC-North, says workers are off the job early Friday, at the Ekati mine, which produces 6 per cent of the world’s diamond supply by value.

And Des Laurier warned BHP Billiton against the use of replacement workers, saying such tactics are unacceptable to northern Canadians.

“BHP Billiton has refused to offer its diamond workers a fair first collective agreement and forced them to go on strike,” said Des Lauriers. “If BHP Billiton adds insult to injury by using replacement workers to operate the mine, the Canadian labour movement will react strongly to denounce the employer’s actions.”

Read more at the national website - there’s also some photos.

Fighting The Blues, the Canadian Labour Congress 13th National Women’s Conference will be held in Ottawa from June 11 to 14, 2006. This is a timely conference for the Labour movement. With the election of a minority Conservative government the challenges for working families and especially for women are greater than ever. The labour and women’s movements have made some important gains over the last decades. We must build our movement to ensure that we maintain the advances we have achieved and move our agenda forward in our workplaces, our communities and our legislatures.

Visit the CLC website for the call letter, registration and more information.

Subsidies have been made available by the National and Regional Offices to assist a PSAC member in BC to attend the conference. Please note the PSAC BC Regional Council conference grant guidelines. Applications for a subsidy (available here) should be received in REVP’s office no later than May 1st. The conference registration deadline is May 23rd.

Minutes of the HR Committee April 5, 2006
Present Deanna, Kim, Carol, Sanda and Francine

Meeting called to order at 18:06

Introductions

Discussion on how the process of becoming a delegate at any of our Conferences or coming Convention is done as well as being an observer.

Discuss on the Following items that are on the list of Resolutions for the Triennial Convention that our Observer needs to do Observers job on behalf of our committee. Carol has been selected to represent our committee as an observer.

Continue reading below or download the April 5th, 2006 BC Human Rights Committee meeting minutes (pdf).

|inline

Funding anti-poverty initiatives in Canada is one of five priority areas for the PSAC’s Social Justice Fund. As part of this the SJF funds initiatives that support a closer collaboration between union members and low income groups in the community, particularly activities that are part of anti-poverty coalitions at the community level.

One of the projects the SJF has funded in BC is the Bread & Roses Collective, a registered not-for-profit society created to support the Victoria Street Newz community newspaper and other projects. The Victoria Street Newz mission is to provide a voice and income opportunities for economically marginalized and/or socially disadvantaged people, while at the same time offering employable skills training, increased self-esteem, confidence, and pride in accomplishments.

Street Newz vendors live on a low income and sign a code of conduct agreeing to be friendly and sober while at work. They pay $.50 for each paper, and sell them by donation at various locations in Victoria’s Downtown, Esquimalt and Saanich. They’re essentially self employed, working as much or as little as they’d like, and free to spend the money they earn as they please. Click for profiles of some of the vendors. Here are the Street Newz issues to date.

Visit the Street Newz website for more information and to read the Street Newz back issues.

The fight continues for a national child care program. As outlined in the Throne Speech on Tuesday, the Harper government is moving forward on financial support for families and ignoring the need for quality child care options.

Here are two press releases issued by the Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada and a backgrounder on the Conservative’s Community Child Care Investment Program.

• Click for Throne Speech - New government must tackle stable funding for child care press release issued on April 3, 2006.
• Click for Child care to become focus of Parliamentary struggle: Throne Speech shows no compromise press release issued April 4, 2006.
• Here is the backgrounder on the Conservative’s Community Child Care Investment Program.

OTTAWA - The Conservatives may talk about transparency but the Speech from the Throne was far from clear on the details of the government’s plans for the upcoming session of Parliament according to the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

“The Speech was long on rhetoric but short on specifics,” says PSAC National President Nycole Turmel. “PSAC members will be waiting for the real news when the government tables its Accountability Act and its first budget.”

According to Turmel, “the Conservatives are promising ‘real protection for whistleblowers’, but we have yet to see just what that means. Real protection for our members means a guarantee of no reprisals and real penalties levied against anyone who breaks that guarantee.”

|inline

Here are some recent additions and changes to the PSAC education schedule:

Visit the education page to see all the courses scheduled to date. Register for these courses online.