Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

Café Rebelde Presents: Our Struggles, Our History: Celebrating May 1st International Worker’s Day

• Friday, April 25
• Rhizome (317 East Broadway)
• 7:30pm

Join us in a discussion to commemorate May Day, learn about our history, accomplishments, and current challenges facing the Canadian and international working class today. A panel discussion will be followed by a multimedia presentation and live music by local artists. Let’s keep the tradition alive and join millions around the world who celebrate this important holiday.

Speakers:

• Cynthia Oka, from No One Is Illegal will speak on the ongoing attacks by
  the Conservative government on immigrant communities and the new proposed
  bill C50.
• A representative from ILPS May Day Committee will speak on the importance
  of May Day and current struggles waged by the immigrant working class in
  Canada.
• A member of the VDLC Young Workers Committee will speak on the current
  fight for fair wages for working people in BC.

Mark Your Calendars and Grab a Sleeping Bag!!!!

The B.C. Federation of Labour will be hosting a Conference for Young Workers on May 30 - June 1, 2008.
This Conference is open to all young union members between the ages of 19 - 30. It will be held at Camp Jubilee which is only a short boat ride just outside of Vancouver. Join other Young Workers from across the province for workshops and seminars ranging from skills building to labour history.

Keep an eye out for the registration form that will be coming soon. If you would like further information, please contact Dayna Sykes at dsykes@bcfed.ca or 604-430-1421.

Download the poster (pdf).

Vancouver, BC, February 16, 2008, the Vancouver and District Labour Council Young Workers’ Committee (VDLC Young Workers’ Committee) is organizing a rally in front of Premier Gordon Campbell’s office (3615 W. 4th Ave) in support of the campaign to increase the minimum wage to $10 per hour and eliminate the $6 per hour “training wage”.

Endorsed by many organizations, including the Vancouver and District Labour Council, the BC Federation of Labour, and the Canadian Federation of Students, the rally sends a unified message to Premier Gordon Campbell. The $8 per hour minimum wage is below the poverty line and not sufficient for minimum wage workers to live on.

“$10 per hour is a reasonable demand and one that can easily be met in our booming economy,” said Stephen Von Sychowski, the chair of the VDLC Young Workers’ Committee. “Young workers are being taken advantage of and paid insufficient wages to live a life that they deserve because of this government’s inaction.”

The minimum wage in BC has not been increased since 2001. According to 2005 Statistics Canada numbers, in order for a minimum wage to earn above the poverty line, they would have to earn at least $10 an hour in 2005 dollars. Inflation has made the situation even worse today.

“We need to change the minimum wage in BC so the term young worker is not synonymous with poor worker,” says Emily Ottewell, who will be speaking at the rally on behalf of the VDLC Young Workers’ Committee. “Gordon Campbell has told the people of BC who counts – his own MLAs just got huge raises. Thousands of people who earn minimum wage are still waiting for theirs.”

The guest speakers for this event include Jim Sinclair, President of the BC Federation of Labour; Emily Ottewell from the VDLC Young Workers’ Committee; and Shamus Reid will be speaking on behalf of the Canadian Federation of Students. There will also be two minimum wage workers who will be telling their tale of living and surviving as minimum wage workers.

More than 50,000 British Columbians have signed the “$10 NOW” petition. Many provinces in Canada have already increased their minimum wages. It is time for British Columbia’s government to legislate a living wage for BC’s young workers.

For more information:
VDLC Young Workers’ Committee Chair, Stephen Von Sychowski, 778-231-4635
Strategic Communication Advisor, Siavash Rokni, 604-782-1950

The Vancouver District Labour Council Young Workers Committee (VDLC) is having a rally in front of Gordon Campbell’s office on Saturday February 16th at 1:00pm to promote the increase of minimum wage. Currently the minimum wage is $8.00 an hour (below the poverty level.) and there is a bogus training wage for new workers where employers are paying as little as $6.00 an hour for the 1 st 500 hours to young and immigrant workers.

Many of the other provinces have already legislated an increase to Minimum wage, BC is falling behind and we have some of the highest costs of living in all of Canada. The labour movement is calling for the abolishment of the $6 training wage and an increase to the minimum wage to $10.00 an hour.

Come out and support some of our provinces most vulnerable workers and the VDLC Young workers. Let’s make this rally a success!

• February 16th /08
• 3615 W. 4th Ave. (In Front Of Gordon Campbell’s Office.)
• 1:00pm
• 8 Bucks Sucks!

You can also show your support by signing the petition on the BC Federation of Labour website.

PSAC Regional Council Youth Representative and co-chair of the BC Fed Young Workers’ Committee, Jamey Mills, will be speaking at this event. The PSAC Vancouver & District Area Council is a member of the May Day Organizing Committee.

MAY DAY 2008: May Day Organizing Committee presents ‘Young Workers Unite!’ a community Forum & Discussion on the present issues and struggles of young workers in Vancouver and how they are organizing themselves

• Thursday, 7 February 2008, 6:30 PM
• Organizing Centre for Economic & Social Justice
• 672 E. Broadway, Vancouver BC (Take the #8 or #9 and get off at Broadway and Fraser)
• Speakers: IWW-Vancouver, Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance-Vancouver, Bus Riders’ Union, B.C. Federation Young Workers’ Committee
• With feature film: “Eyes on the Fries”

more info: ilps_canada@shawcable.com

I want to share with you our latest effort in the Campaign to increase BC’s minimum wage and win a long overdue pay raise for 250,000 low paid workers.

$10 NOW: BC Workers Need a Raise is a short video piece where working people talk about why our minimum wage needs to be increased. It’s just been posted on You Tube, and you can watch it now …

Please let your friends and family know about the video and share it with them.

Thanks to the thousands of people who’ve taken part in our 10 for $10 challenge in October. We generated more than 10,000 new signatures on our petition in the lead up to the November 1st anniversary of the last time B.C.’s minimum was boosted in 2001. Now 50,000 British Columbians have signed on to show their support for a $10 minimum wage.

I also want to give you my commitment that the B.C. Federation of Labour Campaign will continue until the minimum wage is increased and tens of thousands of workers are brought up to the poverty line.

Keep up the fight!

Jim Sinclair, President, B.C. Federation of Labour

Dear Sisters and Brothers:

The B.C. Federation of Labour is pleased to announce that the BC Fed Health & Safety Centre is continuing the Occupational Health & Safety and Labour Education Program into the 2007/2008 school year.

For the past four years, the Centre has been training young workers from various affiliates to facilitate high school sessions across the province.

In 2003, the B.C. Federation of Labour and the BC Teachers’ Federation introduced this Program to prepare young workers to talk to the students in the high schools about their rights in the workplace. Since then, over 30,000 high school students have participated in the workshops, and over 40 young union members have been trained to deliver these workshops. The success of the Program is due to the commitment and passion of these young facilitators.

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Come out and help with this $10 minimum wage campaign event and see a Giants hockey game.

• Where and when: Pacific Coliseum, Friday, April 27th at 6 p.m.

The B.C. Fed Young Workers Committee are going to distribute the $10 NOW Campaign material and gather signatures on a peition at the Pacific Coliseum. Unions are being asked to help out with this important campaign.  People will be meeting at the main entrance to the Pacific Coliseum starting at 6 p.m. before the Giants game at 7:30.

Anyone who helps with the petition blitz will be given a ticket to the Giants playoff game against the Prince George Cougars (popcorn not included.)

Visible-minority immigrants are slower to integrate into Canadian society than their white, European counterparts, and feel less Canadian, suggesting multiculturalism doesn’t work as well for non-whites, according to a landmark report.

The study, based on an analysis of 2002 Statistics Canada data, found that the children of visible-minority immigrants exhibited a more profound sense of exclusion than their parents.

Visible-minority newcomers, and their offspring, identify themselves less as Canadians, trust their fellow citizens less and are less likely to vote than white immigrants from Europe.

The findings suggest that multiculturalism, Canada’s official policy on interethnic relations since 1971, is not working as well for newer immigrants or for their children, who hail largely from China, South Asia and the Caribbean, conclude co-authors Jeffrey Reitz, a University of Toronto sociologist, and Rupa Banerjee, a doctoral candidate.

Continue reading at the Globe and Mail.

Pinoy Poetiks: a night of poetry and cultural performances by Filipino youth and the community to fundraise for the victims of typhoon “Reming” in the Philippines

• When: Saturday Jan. 6th, 2007 at 7pm
• Where: Rhizome Cafe, 317 East Broadway (near Kingsway - across Kingsgate Mall)
• Suggested minimum donation: $5

Just as we entered the holiday season, another tragedy has befallen the Filipino people –mudflows from the slopes of the Mayon volcano, triggered by heavy rains from typhoon “Reming” (international codename: Durian) buried at least eight villages in Albay province in the Bicol region. As of December 1, the mudflows have killed at least 338 people, more bodies are still being recovered. Local officials have warned that the death toll could hit a thousand.

Please come and support and help us continue to build our direct people-to-people support in the face of increasing hardships and adversity facing the Filipino people.

Organized by Ugnayan ng Kabataang Pilipino sa Canada/Filipino-Canadian Youth Alliance-Vancouver

Last weekend brought together young workers from across British Columbia and two young workers from Alberta and Ontario to participate in the YOUR* course (*Young, Organizing, Unionizing and Resisting) held in Vancouver from September 30 - October 1, 2006.

Their expectations ranged from wanting to learn more about their union, meeting other active youth, hearing other people’s perspectives on the important issues for youth, discussing why youth are/not involved in the union and learning how to get more involved.

Click here for some photos!

The BC Federation of Labour is seeking young workers (18-30 years old) to facilitate workshops in high schools about workplace health and safety. The goal of this Project is to educate workers and students about Occupational Health and Safety hazards and solutions and thereby contribute to preventing injuries, illnesses, diseases and deaths in BC workplaces. We currently seeking to identify young workers who are interested in facilitating these workshops.  The goal is to have a diverse group of facilitators from across the province.

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The YOUR course application deadline is in 7 days …

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The YOUR course is a participatory, action-oriented course for PSAC members under the age of 30. It is a unique opportunity for young workers to share their experiences, discuss common struggles and analyze the issues they face at work, in the Union and in society. The course will take place in Vancouver, September 30 & October 1, 2006.

Click for more information, or go straight to the online application.

On July 21, 2006 the PSAC-BC Youth Caucus held a very successful BBQ at Trout Lake Park in Vancouver.

Organized by Jamey Mills, Regional Council Youth Representative, and Amy Painter, 1st alternate to Jamey, the event was hot, fun and relaxing. Many young workers and supporters came to the BBQ, got to meet one another, and took part in a “union benefits” scavenger hunt with prizes donated by the PSAC-BC Regional Organizer.

Check out the photos from the BBQ and contact Jamey if you want to get involved!

Young, Organizing, Unionizing and Resisting!

YOUR course is a participatory, action-oriented course for PSAC members under the age of 30. It is a unique opportunity for young workers to share their experiences, discuss common struggles and analyze the issues they face at work, in the Union and in society.

Participants will discuss their rights as workers and discuss what it means to be in a Union like the PSAC. They will also share and learn about global issues and discuss the role of young workers in the dynamic movement for social justice.

The course will take place in Vancouver, September 30 to October 1. Members under 30 from across the province are encouraged to apply before the deadline of August 18. Apply on line here and/or download the course poster (pdf).
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“Why are so many gays still hiding in the closet? Prominent Persons Need to Come Out for Sake of Young People”

Toronto Pride has chosen the theme “Fearless” this year. Yet the number of gay and lesbian athletes, politicians, business and labour leaders who are still in the closet gives the theme a tinge of irony.

Being out of the closet starts when you stop speaking in the third person about a group of which you are a member.

When I was 16, it confronted me for the first time. A football player made a really denigrating joke about “fags”. Do I defend “us” or “them”?

When my father told me he beat up queers when he was a teenager, do I say “we” or “they” have a right to live without constant fear of being bashed?

When you are rising in Parliament to fight for equal marriage, do you refer to them or us?

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On Thursday, June 22nd at 7:00pm, stars of the international Hip-Hop scene will perform at the Global Hip-Hop Mainstage, a FREE concert celebrating Hip-Hop culture’s massive worldwide appeal and important contribution to positive urban development.

Happening at Earth: The World Urban Festival site tomorrow as part of the youth events for the World Urban Forum, the Global Hip-Hop Mainstage will feature dynamic Hip-Hop and world music artists from Africa, Asia, Europe and Canada’s Indigenous communities.

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Background

The beginnings of the National Youth Anti-Racism Network (NYAN) go back to the UN World Conference Against Racism (WCAR) in Durban, South Africa in 2001, where many of the youth there identified the lack of a strong, unified youth voice on anti-racism and discrimination issues in Canada.

At a post-WCAR symposium organized by the Canadian Race Relations Foundation (CRRF), in Edmonton in 2002, a group of youth, many of whom had been involved in WCAR, convened and developed a vision for a national youth network.

In 2004, the CRRF supported the development of the Network, a Website, and an ad hoc national youth advisory committee. Subsequently, in 2005, NYAN organized a youth conference in Calgary which created a momentum among Canadian youth to mobilize around anti-racism issues. Today, over 170 young anti-racism advocates are members of NYAN and the network continues to grow!

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updated June 7th

Solidarity Works is a three-week hands-on training program sponsored by the BC Fed designed to equip young people with labour education, practical experience and activist skills to demand their working rights.

In the first week of the program, young workers gather in a retreat-like educational setting to discuss topics and learn skills dealing with rights in the workplace, social justice history in Canada, anti-oppressive organizing for unions and in the community, and economics and the impact of corporate globalization.

Following that, to put the education into action, participants spend about two weeks in placements with unions and social justice organizations in the community, working on various projects. During the placements, young workers have: coordinated festivals, organized workshops for youth, helped out on organizing drives in workplaces, planned direct action outside establishments with poor working conditions, supported local and national women’s groups, set up youth committees in their unions, produced radio shows and short films, researched and produced action kits, and lobbied for increased workers’ rights and wages at arbitration and minimum wage board hearings.

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Join the PSAC BC Youth Caucus for a barbeque!

• July 21st, 2006 6 PM - Rain or shine, event is sheltered
• Trout Lake / John Hendry Park - By the concession stand - here’s a map.

• Food, Games & Prizes!
• Children & Spouses welcome!

RSVP Today! To RSVP or for additional information about this event or the Youth Caucus, email Jamey Mills or phone 604-298-6004. Please let us know if you have any specific dietary needs.