At a time when Ontarians are in need of economic recovery, Premier McGuinty put banker, Don Drummond, in charge of recommending cuts to social services and jobs in Ontario. Drummond’s report suggests the way to balance the provincial budget is to make deep cuts; everything from health care to pensions to full-day kindergarten are on the chopping block. Meanwhile, rich corporations will continue to enjoy large tax breaks, which are starving the province of billions of much needed dollars.

The Drummond report is a report by the 1% for the 1%. Premier McGuinty and PM Harper are looking for the same thing: balance the budget at the expense of working people, without calling for an ounce of sacrifice from bankers or CEO’s. Working families have been bearing the brunt of the financial meltdown for years now – lost jobs, shop closures, wage cuts, wage freezes, elimination of pensions and benefits, and other concessions to collective bargaining agreements. Ontario needs job creation, not cuts.

Join the rally on April 21, 2012 at Queen’s Park and tell Dalton McGuinty that he can’t cut his way to prosperity!

Transportation will be available. Speak to your union rep or email info@workersunitedunion.ca.

On April 28, 2012 Canada will honour the National Day of Mourning for workers who have been killed, injured or made ill on the job

The labour movement, communities and individuals across Canada will mark the Day of Mourning to remember and pay respect to those who have been injured and killed on the job. Just about every Canadian is connected to someone who has been killed, injured or made ill on the job. Although we have made gains toward stronger Health and Safety regulations, workplace injuries and workplace related diseases are still all too common.

Unions have long fought for employer responsibility and accountability to maintain safe and healthy workplaces. And provincial safety boards train, investigate and lobby for better safety laws. Provincial safety and insurance boards have put systems in place for workers to obtain information about their rights and employer responsibilities. Workers in Canada have the right to refuse unsafe work and Canadian employers have an obligation to meet safety regulations. Yet employers often fail to comply with the Occupational Health and Safety Act – the results are worker injuries, illnesses and death.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Westray coalmine tragedy; 29 miners were killed in an explosion caused by a deadly mixture of methane, coal dust and negligence. Since then, many more Canadian workers have been killed or injured in mining accidents.

This year Canada will experience dozens of work related accidents. Each month, the Ministry of Labour publishes Court Bulletins, which site all employers that have been fined for violations to the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Accidents happen in all sectors, from manufacturing to retail to agriculture. Just last month Tupling Farms, a potato harvesting company, was fined $90 000 after a worker was killed while at work. In the month of March alone, the MOL has fined 5 Ontario companies for violations to the Occupational Health and Safety Act – resulting in 3 injuries and 2 deaths.

On April 28, 2012, we remember the tragedies suffered and the triumphs achieved.

Downtown Toronto Locations – National Day of Mourning

Woodbridge Location – National Day of Mourning

More remembrance locations to be posted soon!

More about health and safety

Each year, Workers United awards two $1500  scholarships to union members, their children or grandchildren. The Workers United Education Committee, comprised of Workers United members, reviews all eligible applications before awarding two applicants with the scholarships. The scholarship is open to all Workers United members across Canada.

Completed applications must be submitted no later than June 30, 2012. Applications should may be dropped off at or mailed to:

Workers United Canada

317 Adelaide Street West

Toronto, ON M5V 1P9

Click on the link below to view and/or download the application.

2012 Workers United Scholarship Application

Applications are now being accepted – apply today!

Previous winners of the Workers United scholarship:

Scholarship Winners 2010

Scholarship Winners 2011

International Women’s Day has been celebrated in many countries for over 100 years. Thousands of events are scheduled around the world; some countries honour IWD as a national holiday.

In 1911, just days after IWD, a massive fire broke out in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City.  In the wake of this, thousands of women marched through the streets to protest the unfair working conditions that lead to the fire and the ultimate deaths of 143 women.

Traditionally in Canada, we honour achievements made by women and inspire each other to continue positively moving forward. The new millennium has shown women breaking barriers, holding political positions, leading organizations, and enjoying positive legislation. The younger generation may think we have made it. But the systemic oppression and the complexity of patriarchy are ingrained in all of our systems – society, culture, politics, companies, organizations, and families. Women are not equal in numbers in business and politics, women still do not earn the same as their male counterparts, and globally women’s education, health and violence against them is much worse than men.

At Workers United, we have many strong women on the union’s Executive Board, in local president positions, and all working to make our union stronger, smarter and more diverse. They hold the union accountable, speak up for the changes they want to see, and make our union stronger every day.

This year on International Women’s Day, we can appreciate our progress while remembering the struggle that brought us to this point. This year we can celebrate women’s achievements while considering that not all women are living in societies that allow them to vote. This years, we can enjoy the victories while we acknowledge the people that fought to bring about change and the sacrifices they made.

Scout’s Honour uncovered the sexual abuse of over 300 children by Scouts Canada leaders, led to a public apology, a sweeping review of policies, and criminal charges

TORONTO, Feb. 29, 2012 /CNW/ – The Sidney Hillman Foundation judges have awarded the 2012 Canadian Hillman Prize to a team of reporters, producers and researchers led by Harvey Cashore (Head of CBC Investigative Content Unit) and Jim Williamson and Marie Caloz (at the fifth estate). It honours the fifth estate program ‘Scouts Honour’. The hour-long documentary and accompanying news stories that ran on CBC Television, CBC Radio, and CBC.ca told the shocking story of sexual abuse that had occurred inside Scouts Canada since the 1950′s. The stories were directed by Host Diana Swain, producers Timothy Sawa and Angela Gilbert.

CBC News dispatched researchers to court houses across Canada, cross checked files with American lawyers familiar with abuse in Boy Scouts of America, and tracked down perpetrators and victims. The co-investigation with the L.A. Times led to more than 100 newspaper and online stories and editorial comment across Canada and the world. Scouts Canada made an unprecedented apology in a You Tube broadcast, new victims have surfaced, police are investigating and criminal charges have been laid.

The 2012 Canadian Hillman Prize is given to one reported piece or series produced, published, broadcast or exhibited in 2011. It includes newspaper reporting, magazine reporting, broadcast, and photojournalism. The prize honours journalists who seek out stories that change lives, whose work identifies important social and economic issues and helps bring about change for the better, even as support for serious journalism declines.

The submissions were judged by a distinguished panel of Canadian judges: Jim Stanford, Economist with the Canadian Auto Workers, Canada’s largest private-sector trade union and columnist for the Globe and Mail; Laszlo Barna, President Pier 21 Films, Gemini Award-winning executive producer; and Bronwyn Drainie, editor-in-chief of the Literary Review of Canada.

“the fifth estate’s ‘Scout’s Honour’ is a triumph of investigative journalism,” said Stanford.  “The reporters undertook an investigation that was complex, detailed, international, and expensive – far superior, in fact, to most police criminal investigations of the same sort of crimes.  Their findings have made a concrete difference in the lives of hundreds of people, and helped make Canada a safer place for children.  All Canadians owe the CBC, and this program, a huge debt.”

Since 1950, the Sidney Hillman Foundation has honoured journalists, writers and public figures who pursue social justice and public policy for the common good. Sidney Hillman was the founding president of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers Union, a predecessor union of Workers United. Sidney Hillman, an architect of the New Deal, fought to build a vibrant union movement extending beyond the shop floor to all aspects of workers’ lives.

“We received more than 25 amazing entries this year from media outlets large and small across the country,” saidAlex Dagg, Director of Operations at the National Hockey League Players Association, and a Director of the Hillman Foundation. “The exceptional investigative reporting covered a wide range of important subjects from a scientific examination of the environmental impact of the oil sands, to the death of a Calgary man who froze to death at home because his electricity had been shut off, to a national examination of a lack of national health care policies and funding for palliative care in Canada. While there is only one winner, Canadians are well served by the excellent quality of investigative reporting that abounds in this country.”

An awards ceremony will be held in Toronto on March 20 to honour the CBC News investigative team. They will share$5,000 and travel to New York City to participate in the US Hillman Prizes ceremony to be held May 1, 2012.

For more information and to see past winners, please visit the website at www.hillmanfoundation.org.