General Membership Meeting – this Wednesday

Nancy MacBain News

This is a reminder of the General Membership Meeting taking place
Wednesday May 18th
5:30pm (free food at 5:00)
MDCL 3024
Childcare reimbursement is available

Agenda items will include:
– Unit 3 bargaining team elections
– Election of Executive positions
– Election of Bargaining Support Co-Chairs
– Election of Reps to Hamilton and District Labour Council
– Ratification of a summary document of Unit 1 bargaining priorities
– By-law Amendments
– Motion for a committee on political endorsements

Saturday Solidarity with USW 1005

Nancy MacBain News, Political Action

May 14th – 11am – 3pm
USW 1005 Picket Line  (Burlington St – Wilcox Gate)
Meet for the bus at 10:45am – corner of King St E and Bay St

USW Local 1005 have been locked out of their own factory by their Employer, US Steel, since November 7, 2010. Locked out, but not laid off, these workers have not been paid by their employer for almost 5 months now, and US Steel refuses to try to resolve this problem justly or quickly. The Steel Workers continue to picket in front of the factory gates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Join other members of 3906 to show solidarity with lockout Steel Workers!

Thanks to everyone who filled out the Unit 1 Bargaining Survey

Nancy MacBain News, Unit 1, Unit 1 Bargaining

Congratulations to the winners of the draw prizes:
1st place – $150 Fortino’s gift card – Hamid Mousavi
2nd place – $100 Fortino’s gift card – Hindra Hindra
3rd place – $50 Phoenix gift card – Elisabeth Lo

Thanks again to everyone who filled out the survey. This year’s survey had a record response rate from across campus – your participation has been invaluable to the bargaining process.

International Day of Mourning for Killed & Injured Workers – April 28th

Nancy MacBain Health & Safety, News

More than 20 years ago the Canadian Labour Congress declared April 28 a National Day of Mourning for workers who have been killed, suffer disease or injury as a result of work. Every year since, unions, labour councils, families and community partners gather by the thousands to ‘mourn for the dead’. What began through the efforts of Canada’s labour movement is now observed in more than 100 countries. For more information about the Day of Mourning click here.

In Hamilton there will be ceremonies to commemorate the day both on campus and downtown. We encourage all members to attend one of the ceremonies:

City Hall (corner of Main St. & Bay St.) – 10:30am
McMaster (flagpoles in central campus) – 12:30pm

You can also pick up a ribbon to show your support in the CUPE office in Wentworth House B108.

Member Mobilizer Positions

Nancy MacBain News, Unit 1 Bargaining, Unit 3 Bargaining

CUPE 3906 at McMaster University is hiring two Bargaining Support Coordinator positions!  Although they are subject to modification, the various duties of each position are described below.  The contract beings on or about June 1st, 2011.  The rate of pay is $39.40/hour.  The expectation is an average of 5 hours a week (to a maximum of 65 hours), although scheduling is flexible.

The Coordinators will be working with each other, with members of the Local executive, bargaining teams, bargaining support teams, and staff.  Successful applicants will be flexible, independent workers who are self-directed and committed to the work of the Local.  They will also be able to work in busy environments and to coordinate key tasks with others.  Qualified candidates should be familiar with the bargaining process, and experience in member mobilization and bargaining support is an asset.

The posting is open to all members of CUPE 3906.  Applications should include a resumé, cover letter and statement of interest indicating why you are interested in the position, what you would bring to the position, how you understand the union’s work and role in theRead More

All Out to Support USW 1005 in Ottawa on May Day

Nancy MacBain News, Political Action

Free bus to Parliament Hill – May 1st, 2011
Leaves Hamilton at 5:00am – location TBA
Back in Hamilton by midnight
RSVP by noon on April 25th by emailing steelnotsteal@gmail.com

McMaster for Steel calls on Hamilton to go all out for Parliament Hill on May Day where USW 1005, workers from across Canada and their allies will rally at 1:00pm on the eve of a federal elections for a new direction for the economy. The entire city is rallying behind this call because it is about the future of Hamilton and Canada. Read below is the call-out from USW 1005 for more information:

Join Local 1005 USW on Parliament Hill on May First! Break New Ground to Defend the Rights of All! We invite everyone to join us on May First on Parliament Hill to put forward the demands of workers in all sectors of the economy in defense of theRead More

Unit 3 Special GMM – Bargaining Team Elections

Nancy MacBain News, Unit 3, Unit 3 Bargaining

There will be a Special General Membership Meeting for all Unit 3 members (Postdoctoral Fellows) to elect a Bargaining Team for the upcoming round of negotiations.

The meeting will take place:
April 12th
4:30pm
Divinity College 136
Free food will be served, and child care subsidies are available.

Come out and participate so you can have a say in who represents you in these upcoming rounds of negotiations.

Congratulations to the new Executive and Unit 1 Bargaining Team

Nancy MacBain News, Unit 1, Unit 1 Bargaining

Thanks to everyone who came out for the AGM last night!

Elections were held for the 2011-2012 Executive – congratulations to the newly elected members:
President: Nick Longaphy
Vice President: Diana Zawadzki
Vice President External: Blake McCall
Recording Secretary: Dan Opperwall
Chief Steward Unit 1: Jonathan Bernier
Health & Safety Officer: Bridie James
Equity Officer: Sarah Batten
Benefits & Advocacy Officer: Rebecca Strung
Postings Officer: Steve Dingwall
International Officer: Sepander Sepehr
The positions of Secretary Treasurer, Chief Steward Unit 2, Grievance Officer, Communications Officer, Undergraduate Officer and 1 Trustee remain vacant.
The position of Chief Steward Unit 3 (and the Unit 3 Bargaining Team) will be elected at the Unit 3 Special GMM on April 12th at 4:30 in Divinity College 136.

The Unit 1 Bargaining Team was also elected last night. Congratulations to your new team:
Tony Gracey, Afeez Hazzan, Blake McCall, Dan Opperwall, Meaghan Ross, Rebecca Strung, Phebeann Wolframe & Diana Zawadzki

Federal Election Announcement

Nancy MacBain General

We wish to inform our membership that Staff Representative Nancy MacBain will have limited availability for the next three and a half weeks because she is running as a federal candidate in Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale.

For more info on her platform and the other candidates running in the riding, as well as the national vote boycott campaign, please see the following links:

David Sweet – Conservative
Dave Braden – Liberal
Nancy MacBain – NDP
Peter Ormand – Green
Jamilé Ghaddar – Marxist-Leninist
Anthony Giles – Libertarian
National Vote Boycott Campaign

This message does not constitute an endorsement of the Nancy MacBain campaign, or any other political candidate running for office in this or any other riding.