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CUPE 410 endorsements


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#121 Mike K.

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Posted 22 November 2008 - 09:33 AM

Some parallels in this article.

How two women became the unlikely faces of B.C. government's duel against unions
http://www.theglobea...ory/?query=cupe

JUSTINE HUNTER
jhunter@globeandmail.com

November 21, 2008

VICTORIA -- Throughout this fall's busy electoral season, Gloria Laurence saw a flood of unsolicited political advice pour through her mailbox. Some of it came from her union.

She's a special-education assistant who happens, as a requirement of her job, to be a member of the Canadian Union of Public Employees. And she decided she didn't like seeing her own union dues being used to tell her how to vote.

As a result, Ms. Laurence and teacher Wendy Weis have inserted themselves into the middle of a duel between giants. On Dec. 1, the pair will be in B.C. Supreme Court as intervenors when the provincial government and British Columbia's mightiest unions do battle over the right to free speech during elections.

The two women will find themselves occupying a lonely position, just about the only public faces in the province willing to defend the government's unpopular law that will limit third-party advertising for the three-month period leading up to the next provincial election.

"I am little nervous, I hope my colleagues will understand," she said in an interview after being granted standing in the case.

Opposition to the so-called gag law is broad. It includes business groups, trial lawyers, civil-rights activists, environmentalists and more - just about any group that likes to talk about their issues during an election.

But the legal challenge was launched by a coalition of unions representing most of the public-sector work force in the province - including the B.C. Teachers' Federation, of which Ms. Weis is a member, and Ms. Laurence's CUPE.

Chances are, some of the 260,000 union members who will be represented at the trial don't agree with the politics expressed by their labour leaders. Corinna Morhart ran for the federal Liberal Party in the last election in the riding of Skeena-Bulkley Valley. She's a member of the B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union. But CUPE urged voters in her riding to vote for the NDP because "you and your fellow members have told us to ... support the New Democratic Party as the best voice for working families."

Irene Lanzinger, president of the BCTF, insisted her union is non-partisan. "We trashed the NDP government in the 1990s," she noted.

And she maintained her union has a mandate from a majority of its members, tested through polling, to engage in political campaigns.

"So yes, there may be a single individual who has a different point of view and has every right to express that, but this case is really about the government trying to shut up nurses and teachers," Ms. Lanzinger said.

Some unions are non-partisan because their bylaws say so. But going into the May, 2009 election, their interests happen to dovetail nicely with those of the NDP opposition.

The NDP recently ended its official affiliation with trade unions. This case could shed light on how closely they remain intertwined. It also promises to open a window on how much money gets tossed around at election time in a bid to influence voters.

According to documents filed in the case, the seven plaintiff unions spent $2.9-million on advertising in the 88 days leading up to the 2005 election. Under the new law passed in the spring, they'll be limited to $150,000 each, a little over $1-million altogether.

That is a good thing, Ms. Laurence argues. As she spoke, she held a municipal election pamphlet from her union that advises her which candidates deserve her support. She believes her union dues - $35 out of every paycheque - should be spent on collective bargaining and advancing the causes of the children with whom she works.

"I'm not really politically motivated. I feel very passionate about the job I do and what needs to be done for the kids," she said. "People are talking about it in the lunchroom. They didn't realize how much of their money was going to support political campaigns."

Her long-time friend, Ms. Weis, is an integrated support teacher. When the BCTF filed its court documents opposing the gag law, Ms. Weis learned that her union had spent more than $1-million during the 2005 election campaign on advertising - ads that attacked the government and Premier Gordon Campbell.

Ms. Weis and Ms. Laurence are not fighting this alone. Their legal case is being funded by the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association, representing the non-union construction industry. The ICBA strongly opposed an earlier attempt to impose a gag law in B.C. - that one, brought in by the NDP government, was later defeated in court.

Philip Hochstein, president of the ICBA, said he doesn't like gag laws in general, but to him this case is about the unions. "It's not that unions shouldn't get involved in politics," he said. "But when mandatory union dues are used for politics, the unions are taking away individual Charter rights."

A decision - whether in favour of the individual or the many - is expected by January.

***

The debate

In May, the B.C. government watered down its ban on third-party advertising that would have spanned the five months leading up to an election - 120 days plus the 28-day campaign. The new rule will come into effect on Feb. 13, 2009, and stay in place until polls close on May 12, unless it is overturned in B.C. Supreme Court.

The narrower restrictions didn't appease critics. Here are some highlights of that debate:

Attorney-General Wally Oppal, the minister responsible for Bill 42, the Election Amendment Act, 2008: "We ran something up a flagpole and it didn't fly like we thought it would. ... We think the ban here is more reasonable."

New Democratic Party critic Leonard Krog: "You can put lipstick on the pig but it's still a pig."

Philip Hochstein, a business supporter of the B.C. Liberal government: "Democracy is best served when the population is better informed. Anything that restricts that basic tenet of democracy is disappointing."

Stephen Frame, president of the Trial Lawyers Association of B.C.: "As lawyers, we stand up for individuals. We want our province's elected officials to do the same."

Rob Holmes, president of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association: "The Liberals' tinkering does nothing to make it less repugnant. ... What kind of Attorney-General would tell us to compromise on our Charter rights?"

Justine Hunter

Know it all.
Citified.ca is Victoria's most comprehensive research resource for new-build homes and commercial spaces.


#122 Sue Woods

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Posted 22 November 2008 - 02:06 PM

Thx for posting that Mike.
I'm curious how they do things in other places and parts of the world.
Cheers Sue

#123 eseedhouse

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Posted 25 November 2008 - 11:06 AM

Well this thread seems to me to have wandered afar. Of course this is nothing new and it seems that "old threads never die" is just as true here as in any other forum I've used.

At any event, since last night I am no longer president of Local 410 and in no position to speak on it's behalf, or anyone's behalf but my own, so I see no point in attempting to carry the ball further on this topic.

#124 Coreyburger

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Posted 26 November 2008 - 12:57 AM

Well this thread seems to me to have wandered afar. Of course this is nothing new and it seems that "old threads never die" is just as true here as in any other forum I've used.

At any event, since last night I am no longer president of Local 410 and in no position to speak on it's behalf, or anyone's behalf but my own, so I see no point in attempting to carry the ball further on this topic.


Finally retired?

#125 eseedhouse

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Posted 26 November 2008 - 12:55 PM

Finally retired?


Not quite yet. I merely stepped down as President. Actually I am still a delegate for the local to the VLC. I am sure the person who is taking over from me will do a much better job than I ever did.

 



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