Category Archives: In Solidarity

Brigette DePape is Nellie’s Girl

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On June 3, 2011, when Brigette DePape, a 21-year old parliamentary page from Manitoba, pulled out a “Stop Harper” sign during the opening session of Canada’s 41st Parliament, she was escorted out of the room and quickly fired from her position.

Her solitary act of civil disobedience in resistance to the policies of the Harper government not only inspired an outpouring of support, but also called to mind another Manitoba woman, Nellie McClung. In 1912, McClung helped organize the Political Equality League and throughout the 1920s championed female suffrage and a host of measures to combat the social injustices of her time.

On June 18, 2011, a few of us took a trip over to the Manitoba Legislature to express our solidarity with Brigette DePape by bringing her message to the Nellie McClung Memorial located on the grounds of the same Legislature where Nellie won, for Canadian women, the right to vote.

Oppose Harper’s draconian back-to-work legislation

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Winnipeggers rallied in support of locked-out CUPW members in Winnipeg June 16, 2011. Photo: Paul S. Graham

This, just in, from Derek Blackadder at LabourStart. While it is addressed to trade unionists it should resonate with anyone who believes in democracy. The Conservative government’s decision to impose back-to-work legislation strikes at the heart of democracy; it is a form of forced labour, something expressly forbidden by the International Labour Organization of which Canada is a member.

If you think the Tories will stop with postal workers, think again. We must stop Harper here.

Please support the LabourStart campaign and tell Lisa Rait and Stephen Harper what they can do with their back-to-work legislation.

As trade unionists we understand that the right to free collective bargaining without interference from the state is fundamental to what we do.

When the state interferes on behalf of an employer our rights as workers are at stake.

‘Our’ newly-elected Conservative majority government is using the Post Office lockout as the first salvo in its war on trade unions in this country.

The legislation not only forces an end to free collective bargaining, it imposes wages that are less than those Canada Post had tabled.

It is virtually unprecedented for back-to-work legislation in Canada to impose terms and conditions of employment. (You can read the bill in PDF form here.)

Our CUPW e-campaign is within sight of the 10,000 messages mark.

The Minister of Labour is saying that she has thousands of messages demanding legislation to end the strike and to impose new conditions of employment on post office workers.

Help give the union the ability to say ‘we have tens of thousands of messages demanding free collective bargaining’.

Help build not only CUPW’s fightback, but the 4 year long fightback that has just started.

Join this campaign here and pass this link along to ALL your contacts!

See also: Video: Winnipeg Solidarity with the Postal Workers

Video: Winnipeg Solidarity with the Postal Workers

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On June 16, about 1,000 members of several Winnipeg unions rallied at the main post office in Winnipeg in solidarity with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. The rally, one of many to be held across the country, was in response to federal government plans to legislate CUPW members back to work.

The union has been waging a rotating strike that started in Winnipeg on June 2 and then moved to other cities. Canada Post locked out the workers on June 14.

On June 20, the federal Conservative government tabled back-to-work legislation that will force the two sides to accept a form of binding arbitration called final offer selection. Under FOS, each side tables their final offer and the arbitrator picks one.

When governments force an end to strikes they undermine free collective bargaining. To put it another way,  they are trampling on our democratic rights. Some call this fascism; others feudalism. In any case, F-words, such as fightback, are entirely appropriate.

More information: Canadian Union of Postal Workers

Good news for Iranian union leader Mansour Osanloo

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Mansour Osanloo in 2007, shortly before his arrest by the Iranian government.

Once in a while there is good news to share on the political prisoner front, and this is one of those times.

Mansour Osanloo, a bus driver and president of the Vahed Syndicate which represents bus drivers in Tehran, was freed on bail by the Iranian government today after four years of imprisonment.

According to the International Transport Workers Federation: “From its beginnings in 2005 the ITF-affiliated union was subjected to heavy repression, including repeated attacks and arrests. Mansour Osanloo was heavily targeted. As well as being beaten up and having his tongue slit he was imprisoned in 2005 and 2006. Then in 2007, just one month after visiting the London head office of the ITF and meeting trade unionists in Brussels, he was arrested. Three months later he was sentenced to five years imprisonment on charges of ‘acting against national security’ and ‘propaganda against the state’; in 2010 another year was added to his sentence. In reality his only offence was to help found a genuinely democratic trade union.” For more on his case, visit Justice for Iranian Workers.

Regrettably, Mansour Osanloo is not the only trade unionist imprisoned in Iran. Many others, such as Farzad Kamangar (murdered by the Iranian government in 2010) have not been so fortunate. As Amnesty International reported May 20, 2011, arbitrary arrests, torture and executions continue to be routine.

While expressions of international solidarity are not always successful in gaining the release of political prisoners, international silence almost guarantees a bad outcome.

Doing your part to support prisoners of conscience has never been easier. Two of my favourite organizations in this regard are LabourStart and Amnesty International-Canada. There are many others. Find one that fits your preferences and lend a hand. You may help save a life.

June 26 – Global Action Solidarity Day for Justice for Iranian Workers

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Four global union organisations representing over 170 million workers have called a worldwide action day on June 26 to demand justice for Iranian workers. Demonstrations will take place outside Iranian embassies and consulates to protest the ongoing denial of rights and arrests of trade unionists within the country.

The ITUC (International Trade Union Confederation), EI (Education International), ITF (International Transport Workers’ Federation), IUF (International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers’ Associations) are forming a coalition for the event, which is the latest move in an ongoing campaign to secure justice and trade union rights inside Iran. Amnesty International has backed this campaign.

They are calling for:

  • The immediate and unconditional release of all imprisoned trade unionists including Mansour Osanloo, Ebrahim Madadi and Farzad Kamangar;
  • Unconditional recognition of all independent workers’ organisations in Iran and reinstatement of workers who have been disadvantaged as a result of their support for these organisations;
  • Ratification of core ILO Conventions on freedom of association and the right to collective bargain by the Iranian government;
  • Conclusion of collective bargaining agreements between the independent unions and the relevant employers.

This campaign, which has been ignored by the mainstream media, might be lost in the coverage of the popular opposition to the fraudulent June 12 election that returned Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power. That would be a shame. Whether Ahmadinejad retains his grip on the presidency or not, Iran’s sordid record of human rights abuses will continue without fundamental changes.

Find out what you can do at Justice for Iranian Workers.