A chat was held here March 22nd with invitations going out across the province. The Chat Forum was well attended with both sides of the vote being well represented. Few staffers actually e-mailed in their jail site sentiment for reasons of their own, but from sitting here monitoring the chat it seems we are split on the vote. Certain institutions are very much in favour of a NO vote and others go to the other end of the spectrum. Obviously, some were still undecided and we'll only know after the vote is taken March 24-25th.

Thanks John, Clive, Len, Jim, and a few others..

Contact us if you feel we need to do this Chat Thing again.  Jimbo/POKO

The week of March 1st was an interesting time in Ontario

All Opseu members across Ontario voted on the last offer made by the government. It was expected that an overwelming strike vote would be given the union so they could take it back to the table. To that point, the government had offered very little. We didn't expect they would offer any more.

SO......here we go again........

The government says...

While we are being forced to cross our own picket lines because we have been deemed as essential workers, BUSINESS WILL NOT BE AS USUAL

this essential services order cuts the staffing in half in our jail

Where we normally operate with seven staff guarding upwards of 100 prisoners, we will now have 4 staff doing the job. Should you come to the jail to visit with a loved one, be prepared for a very long wait! Best you dont come at all as you would first have to cross our picket line. Second, your loved one would then have to be escorted to his visit. We dont anticipate being able to safely do this.

There will be no visits !

Lawyers, Judges ...... be prepared for a long wait getting prisoners to court

Delivery trucks, garbage removal vehicles ....best you reschedule your dropoffs and pickups...there will be a long wait at our picket line.

BUSINESS AS USUAL, MY ASS

THE STRIKE WAS AVERTED

Sunday March 7th

Strike Vote Results have been released - an overwhelming vote of confidence has been given the union to take back to the table.

Listen Mr. Harris or reap what you sew !

and have a wonderful election...

On behalf of jail guards across Ontario, I'd like to personally acknowledge the hard work our Bargaining Team has done to get us this far. I can only imagine what you were up against judging from the remarks made by the Honourable Minister (highlighted below)in the press.

THANKS TEAM !

Your Corrections Bargaining Team voted: 4 to accept the offer - 1 not to accept -  2 abstained

I have no explanation for the two that abstained!

Send our OPSEU President a message

To keep abreast of union details as they become available, we suggest you link to Opseu's webpage.

Click on this logo

  .....................Background Information Below.......................

Unfortunate Events from the 1996 Strike

1999 - Another strike looms in the Ontario Prison System

The Harris Government doesn't seem to want to talk.

so..................Here we go again...........

Ottawa Guards in the News

LOCAL NEWS- Wednesday 17 March 1999- Union predicts violence at jail- Some inmates making weapons in case guards strike tonight Gary Dimmock/ The Ottawa Citizen......

An expected walkout by jail guards at the regional detention centre could lead to bloody clashes among inmates who are arming themselves for the worst, a union boss warned yesterday. The jail guards are among 48,000 provincial public servants in a legal strike position at midnight tonight. "The staff in here now protect inmates from other inmates and if there's less staff then there's going to be violence. The reduced staff means guys are going to be slipping through the cracks and you're going to end up with serious injuries or even death," said Roger Kirkey, president of Ontario Public Service Employees Union Local 411. Of the 48,000 public servants represented by OPSEU, only 37,000 are allowed to strike. The rest -- ambulance workers, firefighters and hospital workers -- are considered essential workers and must therefore stay on the job. Mr. Kirkey said tension among the 350 inmates at Ottawa-Carleton Regional Detention Centre on Innis Road is rising. He said prison staff report that inmates are arming themselves with homemade weapons for their own protection in case guards walk out. Mr. Kirkey said that under essential services agreements, half of 235 jail staff, which includes 175 guards, would cross the picket line. The only way to avoid violence, he said, would be to keep the inmates in their cells for the duration of the strike. He said the management board has yet to approve such a plan. "There are going to be serious problems unless there is a total lockdown and I hope they agree to it. That way, at least there will be some control in here. If not, there will be problems and I won't be letting any staff come in here for fear of their safety," Mr. Kirkey said. Yesterday afternoon, contract negotiations were at a virtual standstill, with both sides sticking to their hardened positions. The union argues it hasn't had a wage increase since 1991 and contends the Harris government is determined to keep 22 per cent of jail staff in part-time jobs. The government has offered a 3.2 per cent wage increase over three years and a merit-pay increase of up to five per cent. The government also says the union has demanded a 20 per cent wage increase. Yesterday, however, Mr. Kirkey insisted the union has never made such a "ridiculous" demand and said his rank-and-file would easily suspend its planned walk out in exchange for a wage hike of nine per cent. The union boss also scoffed at the government's merit-pay offer for bottom-scale earners because such employees account for only five per cent of staff. "We're ready to compromise but the government has not given the bargaining teams the mandate to negotiate. Our people are at the table right now just waiting for the government to open negotiations and give us a good offer," Mr. Kirkey said. The union boss fears this week's looming strike will mark a return to the problems that unfolded during the walk out in 1996, the biggest province-wide strike in Ontario history. During that strike, young inmates at a facility in Goderich, 300 kilometres west of Toronto, barricaded themselves inside the jail, vandalized furniture and locked out guards. Ontario Provincial Police had to enlist striking guards to quell the rioting youths. While there were reports of widespread vandalism and arson at jails across Ontario, inmates at Ottawa-Carleton Regional Detention Centre did little more than complain about being locked up after supper. "I think there will be more problems this time around," Mr. Kirkey said. He also said jail guards are among the most militant union members because of the daily pressures they face at work. "We deal with a lot of situations most people couldn't imagine," said the union boss, a jail guard himself. "I go into work some days and even before breakfast I've had people bleeding over me, a fight of guys biting ears off, knifings and assaults on staff, overdoses and guys coming in high,"Mr. Kirkey said. "We're not complaining about the work but we want some respect,"he said. The walk out at the jail, built for 182 but holding 350 inmates, will mean prisoners will lose some mobility and privileges. Their daily yard time for exercise will be cut from one hour to 20 minutes, lunch will be cancelled and inmates will not have access to recreational programming. Jail staff, who are now working to rule, voted 85 per cent in favour of walking out in their fight for better pay and job security. The top salary for a correctional officer is \$44,000. The staff at the regional detention centre did not participate in this week's mass "sick in" at six jails across the province. Up to three quarters of staff phoned in sick, forcing skeleton prison staff to lock down inmates. The Ontario Provincial Service Employees Union, the biggest government union, represents 48,000 provincial employees. John Hutton, jail superintendent, would not comment on the fears of violence during the expected walk out. He also wouldn't comment on staffing levels. Under essential services agreements, Mr. Hutton said staff must provide meals, recreational programs and laundry services. "Everything will be on a modified procedure within the institution. There will be fewer visits, less time for yard exercise and reduced laundry," Mr. Hutton said. Copyright 1999 Ottawa Citizen

Stay Safe You Guys!

March 17, 1999.... Treatment of prison guards shameless...

By MICHAEL HARRIS/ Ottawa Bureau

OTTAWA -- As readers of this column may remember, I have a thing about the miserable way we treat the guards in our prison system. After The Toronto Sun ran a series of scathing articles on working conditions in the federal system, the warden of Kingston Penitentiary, Monty Bourke, brought in the bloodhounds. I am happy to report that after weeks of a high-level witch-hunt, Warden Bourke punished the wrong people. Neither of the union members who were given written reprimands or suspension without pay ever provided me with information for my articles. But I don't want Monty to be feel disappointed. His 10-thumbed rush to justice accomplished something. Guards who previously had talked to me about the realities of their work fell silent. They feared that CSIS, the RCMP, or some other incarnation of Big Brother was watching and that contact with me could cost them their jobs. So congratulations, Monty, your little miscarriage of justice produced the desired result: an intimidated silence on the unspeakable conditions we impose on our correctional officers. But from time to time, my phone still rings. By tomorrow night, Ontario could be plunged into a situation that might well be the triggering event for the brewing explosion in our overcrowded provincial jail system. For six months, the provincial government and OPSEU supposedly have been haunting hotel rooms in downtown Toronto in search of a new contract for Ontario's jail guards. That is a myth. What they actually have been doing since September 1998 is hammering out the so-called Essential Services agreement. Until such essential employees are designated, the union couldn't strike. By mid-February, that part of this bad soap opera was complete, two months behind schedule. And guess what happened next? With bargaining slated to officially begin on Feb. 16, OPSEU immediately called for conciliation, claiming that the government was stalling. You don't need to be Bill Gates to figure out what's going on here. In their ongoing war to defeat the Harris government, OPSEU is doing its best to stage a bitter strike on the eve of what it believes may be a provincial election. That is a sad enough abuse of power. But it becomes all the worse when you consider that this agenda-driven union will be doing it at the expense of its own membership. The first time OPSEU was in a position to strike, the men and women who risk their lives in Ontario jails were out for five brutal weeks, a financial ordeal from which many rank-and-file members have never recovered. It was needless then, and it is needless now, provided the government stops playing Scrooge to the people who are society's first line of defence against our most dangerous people. Counting on the rank and file's unhappiness with OPSEU, the Harris government wagered that a token offer would shut this potentially disastrous labour dispute down before it ever gets started. The government knew how unhappy corrections officers were when OPSEU voted in convention to appropriate the full salaries of any member forced to work. Nothing could be riskier, or, in my opinion, more doomed to failure than such a premise. The guards may be unhappy with OPSEU, but they're not stupid. You do not insult people who haven't had a raise in six years with an offer of a .85%, 1.35% and 1% raise over three years. Or by leaving shift premiums at levels that would embarrass a sweat shop -- 52c and 62c respectively. Or by dismissing their request for more training in a workplace where that might be the difference between life and death. As one member put it: "That's all it's worth to be spit on, urinated on, defecated on, assaulted and abused by inmates and management both ... All we had to see was a little appreciation at the Corrections bargaining table from the government for the sh-- we have been putting up with without a raise for over six years." They didn't get it. Both OPSEU and the provincial government must stop playing politics with this explosive situation. The clearest sign that both sides are headed for disaster is the dangerous idea that there is such a thing as a "partially" essential service, as guards are now described in the Essential Service agreement. Being a prison guard is dangerous work at present staffing levels. Tinker with those levels, and you remove the one thing that deters inmates from assaulting staff: the certain knowledge that the institution has the muscle to deal with inmate violence. "The only real protection that a correctional officer has is the fact that if they are in trouble, within a matter of seconds, there will be a swarm of backup officers to lend assistance. If you reduce that response by either time or number, then you have lost that deterrent," a guard said. "We're dealing with a real potential for life-and-death situations." It's time government and OPSEU showed some respect for that stark reality. A politically motivated strike is not the answer. A fair deal is.

Michael Harris can be e-mailed at mharris@istar.ca Click Here to send him Mail

or visit his home page.

Michael is The Sun's national affairs columnist.

Toronto Sun... Friday, March 26, 1999... Fed guards vow walkout

By LAURA BOBAK, TORONTO SUN

Some federal prison guards vowed yesterday to walk off the job early today, despite back-to-work legislation enacted yesterday by Parliament. Most of Canada's 4,500 guards aren't allowed to strike, but about 700 "non-essential" workers were set to walk at 12:01 a.m. "Watch us go -- across the board," said one Ontario union official, who asked not to be named. A union spokesman said the guards could legally stay out until 5 a.m., because they had 12 hours to report to work after the legislation was officially enacted at 5 p.m. yesterday. "They're going to take advantage of it, I'm sure of that," said Mike Donoghue, a corrections officer at Kingston Penitentiary. He said non-striking guards reporting to work are expected not to cross picket lines. Correctional Service Canada said yesterday it has the RCMP and the military on call to break through any picket lines that block employees from getting to work. "We have contingency plans for all kinds of situations," said spokesman Jacques Belanger. Meanwhile, some guards said yesterday they have been kept on duty as long as 24 hours due to impassable picket lines of blue-collar workers, who have been on strike for 48 days. A guard at the federal Edmonton Institution said yesterday he'd been working 12 hours without a break, while some of his fellow officers had been on duty for 20 hours. "We're being held hostage here," the guard said. "The inmates are better rested than the guards ... it's just not a safe environment. It's a disaster waiting to happen," he said.

Guards haven't had a wage increase for eight years. They want wages on par with the RCMP.

...........Here we go Again..........

......from the Harris website......

I'm proud of our accomplishments - Ontario is clearly on the road to recovery. The signs of improvement are everywhere - more jobs, lower taxes, a lower deficit and improved services designed for the 90's and beyond.

Ontario has come a long way since June 1995 - from the verge of bankruptcy, to leading Canada in growth, new jobs and opportunity.

EXCUSE ME ???

Toronto Sun.... Deal close: Source..... OPSEU and Tories in last-ditch talks

By JAMES WALLACE, QUEEN'S PARK BUREAU.......... OPSEU and the government were on the verge of a contract deal early this morning. "We're getting ready to sign," a source close to the negotiations told The Toronto Sun. The two sides were working out final details, and expected to have a deal in the morning. Meanwhile, jails across the province were bracing for a possible wild-cat strike by guards. Earlier last night, just before the deadline, negotiators said they were planning to stay at the table until 7 a.m. today to try to cobble together a deal that's been in pieces since November. "We're working a little more seriously at the table to try to reach an agreement to avoid a strike," management board chairman Chris Hodgson said shortly before a mediator-imposed news blackout earlier yesterday. OPSEU president Leah Casselman said she was "anticipating" a deal, but suggested government demands are provocative. "Our members are prepared to fight for a better collective agreement," Casselman said. "They want to be treated fairly. The question is, where do we need to be (today)." OPSEU represents about 48,000 provincial workers, but only 37,000 are allowed to strike. The rest are classified essential workers. Both sides in the dispute have made significant concessions. The government dropped controversial proposals for short-term layoffs that sparked the 1996 civil-service strike, and a plan to overhaul bureaucrats' job descriptions. OPSEU this week cut its wage demands in half. The union's latest known demands for raises now range from 8% to 9.5% over two years, down from the 12% to 20% hikes negotiators had been seeking. Last night, Hodgson called the figures "unrealistic." "We do agree that our employees should receive a raise," he said. "(But) our objective is to find something that is fair to the employees and also realistic in terms of what taxpayers can afford." The government's pay-hike offer amounts to 3.2% spread over three years. OPSEU said its members haven't received across-the-board pay hikes for six to nine years. Most also lost thousands of dollars in salary during "Rae Days" under social-contract cuts imposed by former NDP premier Bob Rae. Other stumbling blocks to a deal include union demands for a no-job-loss guarantee, a proposal to extend an early-retirement package, and a demand that would make it easier to convert contract workers into full-time employees. The government wants to give civil servants "performance pay" instead of automatic seniority pay hikes and also limit "bumping," where workers with seniority can take jobs from others. Meanwhile, jail guards continued to catch "Blue Flu" at institutions across the province. At least 21 jails have been hit with mass "sick-ins" during the past three days. Jails guards, who by law are essential workers, have threatened to stage an illegal, wildcat strike.

Canadian Press...... Thursday, March 18, 1999

Province, union keep bargaining....... By IDELLA STURINO -- Canadian Press

TORONTO -- As the government and union officials representing the province's 48,000 civil servants kept negotiating long past the strike deadline, the fate of routine services across Ontario hung in the balance. When the midnight strike deadline for the Ontario Public Service Employees Union arrived Wednesday, both sides agreed to extend the contract talks. A strike would see about 37,000 civil servants represented by OPSEU walk off the job. The rest, considered essential employees, would stay at work. The walkout would make it impossible for Ontarians to renew a driver's licence, get a marriage certificate or health card or register a business. Ontario Place, the Ontario Science Centre and provincial parks would all close. "You're going to notice it," OPSEU spokeswoman Katie FitzRandolph said Wednesday night about effects of a strike. Provincial police, ambulance and emergency services would operate as usual, while highway maintenance and snow removal would operate on a limited basis. GO transit trains and buses would run normally. Ramifications of a looming strike were felt late Wednesday night at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre, when 26 inmates barricaded themselves in a common room with mattresses and other furniture. There was an estimated \$10,000 damage and two inmates were treated in hospital for smoke inhalation, said Correctional Services spokesman Ross Virgo. The protest lasted for five hours and ended when the final 16 inmates, who hadn't surrendered earlier, gave up. The convicts were worried they could be locked down if the guards went on strike. Virgo said inmates would face some additional cell time during a labour disruption, but added efforts would be made to minimize their "disruption and discomfort." Prison guards would be obliged to work certain shifts during a walkout under an essential services agreement. More than 130 jail guards across Ontario called in sick Wednesday, the third straight day of what the government calls an illegal strike and the union calls the flu. The so-called "sick-in" hit facilities in Hamilton, Toronto and Ottawa, as well as jails in Peterborough, Owen Sound, Whitby and Lindsay, Virgo said. The continued bargaining followed OPSEU president Leah Casselman's observation Wednesday afternoon that neither side had made any progress. "We've lowered our wage demands and we're waiting for them to respond," Casselman said. "We're not bargaining with ourselves." But later, union and government officials both agreed extending the midnight strike deadline was a positive sign. A news blackout was still under effect. The union was seeking wage increases of between 8 and 9.5 per cent over two years, down from original demands of between 12 and 20 per cent. The government was offering 3.2 per cent over three years plus selected merit pay bonuses of up to five per cent. The latest concession is a positive sign but wage demands remained "unrealistic," said Management Board chairman Chris Hodgson, the minister responsible for government operations. "Our objective is to find something that's fair to the employees and also realistic in terms of what taxpayers can afford," Hodgson said Wednesday. Job security and early retirement provisions are also sticking points in the dispute. The union has said its members bore the brunt of the Conservative government's downsizing and were being asked to make more sacrifices. In the past three years, the Tories have cut about 16,500 jobs and plan to cut the 65,000 that remain by another 13,500. About 3,500 of those employees would be laid off, not shifted to private-sector employers.

Toronto Star...... 11th-hour talks aim to avert strike ...... 'We're holding off on pickets,' OPSEU says as deadline passes

By Vanessa Lu/ Toronto Star Workplace Issues Reporter

Talks continued past a midnight strike deadline last night to avert a walkout by Ontario civil servants after the union told its members not to start picketing. ``If there wasn't any hope, talks wouldn't continue. It's somewhat optimistic,'' Katie FitzRandolph, a Ontario Public Services Employees Union spokesperson, said just after the midnight deadline passed. ``We're holding off on pickets for the time being.'' She said no new strike deadline had been set. ``Make no mistake, pickets could go up very quickly.'' But workers at several sites said they had been told not to picket until 7 this morning. ``They were locked in and trying to iron it out,'' said Edward Almeida, vice-president of OPSEU Local 248, which represents 300 people at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre. Almeida said he received a call at about 9:30 last night telling him to hold off walking out at midnight. Three guards at the Toronto (Don) Jail told The Star last night they also had been asked to hold off to allow talks to continue through the night. Negotiations continued under a media blackout imposed yesterday by the mediator. A strike would be the second in three years by Ontario's civil servants. Hillary Stauth, press secretary for the Management Board, said progress was being made at the bargaining table. Of the 48,000 Ontario public servants covered by the contract being negotiated, only 37,000 are allowed to strike. The rest, such as jail guards and ambulance drivers, are deemed essential. The union is seeking wage increases of 8 per cent to 9.5 per cent over two years, down from initial demands of 12 per cent to 18 per cent. The government offered 3.2 per cent over three years plus merit pay bonuses of up to 5 per cent. The union wants downsizing done through early retirement and attrition. As well, the union wants better job security and permanent employment for about 11,000 contract employees. The membership voted 67 per cent in favour of strike action earlier this month. The last strike in 1996 lasted five weeks, and riot police clashed with strikers outside Queen's Park as politicians and staff tried to get to work on the first day of the Legislature's spring session. What it means to you How an Ontario Public Service Employees Union strike would affect Ontario government services: Health care: No new or replacement OHIP cards issued. No benefits from Trillium drug program or assistive devices programs. Public health laboratories, special care homes operating as usual. Emergency services: Provincial police, ambulances, flood and forest fire emergency services all operating normally. Drivers and vehicles: No driver exams; no issuing of new or replacement driver's licences. Licence suspensions and expirations will be extended until strike ends. Registration services: Registrar General office closed; o birth, death, marriage certificates or name changes issued. No business registration or incorporation. Tourist attractions: Ontario Science Centre, Ontario Place and all provincial parks closed. Royal Ontario Museum, Art Gallery of Ontario, Science North and Royal Botanical Gardens all open. Transportation: Limited highway maintenance and snow removal; GO trains and buses operate as usual. Benefit payments: Social assistance cheques and other benefits will continue to be paid. Management Board Chairman Chris Hodgson called the union's lower wage demands a positive sign, but still unrealistic. ``Our objective is to find something that is fair to the employees and also realistic in terms of what taxpayers can afford,'' Hodgson told reporters. ``We do agree that our employees should receive a raise. They have worked hard in the last number of years. There has been a lot of changes, but it has to be fair to the taxpayers as well,'' he said. A strike means some services normally provided by the provincial government will not be available including getting drivers' licences and health cards issued or replaced. Driver's licences that expire during the strike will remain valid until the job action is over and there will be limited driver and vehicle services such as renewals of plate stickers and ownership transfers. But driver's tests will not be available, new licences will not be issued and licence suspensions will remain in effect until the strike ends. Social assistance and welfare cheques will still be issued, and family support payments will continue to be processed and delivered. Court rooms will operate as usual, but court counter services will be restricted. Land registry offices will have limited hours of operation from noon until 3 p.m. weekdays. Birth, death and marriage certificates will not be issued. As well, businesses will not be incorporated. Ontario Place, the Ontario Science Centre and provincial parks will close. However, the Royal Ontario Museum, Art Gallery of Ontario and the Royal Botanical Gardens will stay open. Provincial police, ambulance and emergency services would operate as usual during a strike, while highway maintenance and snow removal would be on a limited basis. GO Transit trains and buses would run normally. In the days leading up to the strike deadline, some provincial jail guards already started their own job action. About 130 of the union's 4,800 jail guards called in sick yesterday at eight facilities: Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Peterborough, Owen Sound, Stratford, Whitby and Lindsay. Guards across the province have been booking off sick since Monday. The Ontario Labour Relations Board said the activity appeared to be an illegal strike, but could not rule until a hearing was held. Union officials have denied any role in the sudden surge in members calling in sick. Under an essential services agreement, prison guards will be required to work certain shifts, said Ontario Corrections spokesperson Ross Virgo. The union has promised to honour that agreement. An estimated 11,000 employees are deemed essential and include some ambulance workers, firefighters and hospital workers. ``I would expect that jail guards are professional, and that they will respect the laws of the land,'' Hodgson said, calling the union's commitment to abide by the essential services agreement ``a positive sign.''

AND MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL

Province, union reach agreement......... TORONTO (CP) - The Ontario government reached a tentative contract agreement early Thursday with the union representing 48,000 civil servants, avoiding a strike that would have brought some government services to a halt. Details were not immediately available. Leah Casselman, president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, said she will recommend that the tentative agreement be accepted by the government workers. A vote will be held "within the week," she said. The agreement was reached at 5:30 a.m., 5˝ hours after a strike deadline set by OPSEU. Negotiators agreed to extend the talks late Wednesday night as they worked toward a deal.

The Government's Minister..Secretariat Board

The Honourable (?) Chris Hodgson

personal note/webmaster.....Mr. Harris - you gotta be kidding!

Chris Hodgson, M.P.P. for Victoria-Haliburton, was sworn in as Minister of Natural Resources and Minister of Northern Development and Mines on June 26, 1995. He currently serves as Minister of Northern Development and Mines, and was appointed Deputy House Leader and the Chair to Management Board of Cabinet, in November, 1997, by Premier Harris. First elected to the Ontario Legislature in a March 1994 by-election, Mr. Hodgson represents the riding of Victoria-Haliburton. In opposition, Mr. Hodgson was the critic for the Ministry of Natural Resources and a member of the Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills. He also took part in the Progressive Conservative Task Force on Rural Economic Development. Mr. Hodgson graduated from Trent University in Peterborough in 1985, with an Honours Bachelor of Arts in political science. Before entering political life, he was a real estate salesperson, and ran his own development business. In 1993, he was the founding chairperson of the Community Futures Committee, an organization dedicated to bringing new jobs and opportunities to the Haliburton area, and vice chair of the county's health care planning group. He was also reeve of Dysart and warden of Haliburton County in 1993. A former minor-league hockey coach, Mr. Hodgson is a past president and player of the Haliburton Men's Hockey League. He is a member of the Haliburton Highlands Outdoors Association and the Lions Club. Mr. Hodgson was born in Haliburton, Ontario, on December 7, 1961. He and his wife, Marie, have two sons, Clayton and Cody, and two daughters, Charlotte and Caroline.

webmaster's personal note....

Marie, Clayton, Cody, Charlotte and Caroline - you have my sincere condolences

POKO

The Canadian Union of Public Employees

Another labour group is in the headlines lately. CUPE is a strong organization with a wealth of professionals looking out for their membership. Click below to link to them.

The following is an article taken from the CUPE website that is well worth your reading. It deals with privatization.