june 2015 yukon employees' union newsletter

Yukon Employees’ Union2285-2nd Ave.Whitehorse, YukonY1A 1C9

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Yukon Employees’ Union

NEWSJune 2015Breaking new trail for workers' rights & social justice.

Strike votes, Recession & the 9 Day Fortnight. Yukon’s econo-my was in freefall in 1982.The hard rockmining indus-try had col-lapsed, mineswere shut-tered andthe territoryslid intorecession.Hundredswere outof worka n drecoveryl o o k e dbleak. It

was against that evolvingbackdrop that the negotiating team of the YTPSA

met with the Yukon Territorial Government in early 1982.

Still battling wage disparity and the high cost of living in thenorth, YTPSA opened salary negotiations with an 18% payraise demand. This was met with a resounding NO by thegovernment who offered 13.5% and no more. The union andemployer battled it out at the table but reached impasse whenthe government’s offer was rejected by the union. Internalconflict within the Union saw the resignation of 2 of 3YTPSA bargaining team members.

In May of 1982, Government leader Chris Pearson withdrewthe salary offer and chided the union for its attempt to “insu-late public servants from the economic environment whichprovides their livelihood”.

Following the decision of a conciliation board, the Union rec-ommended ratification of a contract containing an increase of10.2%. A territory wide ratification tour followed, and the

ballot boxes returned toWhitehorse to be counted. Butwhile the union was getting thecontract ratified, the politiciansrefused to accept the concilia-tor’s recommendations. Nodeal.

YTPSA didn’t bother openingthe ballot boxes. Instead, theygrabbed new ballot boxes andhit the road again. This timethough, they were looking fora strike mandate; they got it -over 80% of the membershipvoted in favour of a strike.

When they returned toWhitehorse, strike vote inhand, both sides met again atthe bargaining table. Thistime they agreed on a 10%raise and the deal wassigned.

Meanwhile, the economicrealities of a territory with-out a hard rock miningindustry could not beignored. Soon after the con-tract was signed, the land-scape shifted again.

Government leader ChrisPearson rose in the legisla-ture to say “Mr. Speaker,

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YEU NEWS June 2015

The PSAC Access Committee has been lobbying for scent freeworksites and events for many years. People with scent sensi-tivities suffer from severe adverse reactions to scents and thechemicals found within those scented products. As part of our lobbying activities, our Committee purchasedscent-free shampoo, conditioner and liquid soap and providedmembers with samples of these at the 2014 YEU TriennialConvention & the 2015 Shop Steward Conference. Uponrequest, samples were also distributed by some of our membersat other events across the country and they were very wellreceived.

The Access Committee will continue to advocate for scent-freeworksites as some employers have no scent free policies. TheYukon Government now promotes “Scent SensitiveAwareness” but that’s not strong enough for our members.

Being aware that your scented product makes other sick isn’tgood enough; we need people to stop wearing scented productsthat make other people sick.

We need the employer to stop allowing this to happen. We planto continue to work on this issue and will continue to lobby forthe safety of our members. If members would like more infor-mation and/or samples, please contact the Access Committeethrough the PSAC office at 667-2331.

PSAC Access Committee Advocates for healthy spaces.

5pm @ YOOP HallThursday June 25



All YEU/PSAC members are welcome.

Dawson City 5pm @ YOOP Hall







YEU President Steve Geick & YEU Vice PresidentsChris Aylward, PSAC North REVP Jack Bourassa,

Sue Christianson & Tony Thomas.YEU President Steve Geick & YEU Vice PresidentsChris Aylward, PSAC North REVP Jack Bourassa,Come meet PSAC National Vice-President



YEU President Steve Geick & YEU Vice PresidentsChris Aylward, PSAC North REVP Jack Bourassa,

It’s finally summer and it’s our turn to cook!Bring your nion questions & your appetite -





Have you checked to besure you're registered tovote in the 2015 FederalElection?

For the first time,enumerators will NOT becoming door to door toconfirm your eligibility.

So even if you have voted in every election forthe last 50 years, it pays to check at the link weare sharing below. You might be surprised to findyou are not on the voter’s list. Don’t wait untilelection day to find out you’re not on the list.

Register quickly and easily online atwww.elections.ca

*The Yukon Aboriginal Peoples' Committeewill have a VOTER REGISTRATION KIOSKset up at the Kwanlin Dun Centre onAboriginal Day, June 21. Go check them out...it matters!

Are YOU Registered to Vote?

I read an article recently called "Organizing Never Stops" writ-ten by American trade union organizer Robert Muehlenkamp.He broke down what unions do well when organizing a newwork site: we identify the leaders then educate the leaders tomobilize the membership against issues they face at work. Weprovide regular communication, get to know their worksite andbecome features in their daily lives. But far too often the orga-nizing stops once the first collective agreement is signed.

We often expect those early leaders to carry on as the grassroots activists forever. We rely on them to mobilize membersalone or with minimal support and then we’re surprised when

we don’t have a broad base of memberactivists. We wait until there is a crisisor immediate need for member engage-ment and when it’s a struggle, we blamemember apathy.

What we sometimes fail to do is to growour partnership with the rank and filemembers; the real grass roots.

I hope we're not too late because thereis a crisis looming, an upcoming feder-al election. Yukoners have been dissat-isfied with a lot of what this govern-

ment has done in terms of the environment, First Nations rela-tionships and cuts to services and programs we value.

I've stated before that as an organization YEU/PSAC does notendorse any one political party and we will not tell you how tovote. We will however ask you to vote and make sure your voteis informed. We also need your help to mobilize your work-places and our communities.

All Canadians have a right to retirement security, wellresourced health care, affordable quality child care and goodjobs. It's time that we start making better choices and explorethese issues to find solutions that work for us all and support ahealthy Canadian economy.

Please take time to check out betterchoice.caIn the 4 months leading up to the federal election YEU willpromote the CLC’s Better Choices campaign. You’ll hear aboutit from your union, your co-workers and in the media. We needour grass roots members (you) to help mobilize your co-work-ers and motivate people to engage. If you are approached aboutthis campaign, please listen. Inform yourself. Ask your candi-dates hard questions, look for solutions and please, get out andvote October 19th.

Together for Safety: a new protocol, a new relationshipMay 29th 2015 marked the start of a new relationship betweenwomen in Whitehorse and the RCMP. Since 2013, Whitehorsewomen’s groups and the RCMP have collaborated to create anRCMP Safety Protocol entitled Together for Safety, with theshared goal of improving response services to women inWhitehorse.

In response to a recommendation in the Police Commissionreport, Yukon women’s advocacy groups formed a coalition tohelp create the TFS Protocol. Signatories include LesEssentielles, Whitehorse Aboriginal Women’s Circle, YukonStatus of Women Council, the Victoria Faulkner Women’sCentre, the PSAC Regional Women’s Committee and the PSACYukon Aboriginal People’s Committee. The work and collabo-ration took place over a year, ensuring the many voices werereflected in the finished product.

PSAC member Linda Moen was invited to represent both theRegional Women’s Committee & the Yukon AboriginalPeople’s Committee on the newly formed coalition. Linda is aFederal employee, a mother and an aboriginal woman who livesin her First Nation community. Honoured and a bit apprehen-sive, Linda decided she had the support she needed from the

committees to take onthe task. She quicklylearned that she hadmuch to offer the discus-sion and learned a lotfrom the process.

When the Together forSafety Protocol wassigned on May 29th2015, Linda signed onbehalf of both commit-tees. As the Protocoltakes effect, Linda hopesthe spirit of the agree-ment informs interactions between the women of Whitehorseand the RCMP.

YEU wants to thank Linda Moen, the PSAC Regional Women’sCommittee and the Yukon Aboriginal Peoples’ Committee fortaking on this role in our community. It’s good to know this isthe work our Union is doing, through the dedication and com-mitment of the committees and their members.

YEU NEWS June 2015

YEU PresidentSteve Geick

It’s time for Better Choices and we need our grass roots activists.

YEU NEWS June 2015

Meetings & Events Local Y018 & Y033 AGMs: Wed. June 24, YOOP HallY010 Monthly Meeting: 2nd Tues., 5:30-7:30 p.m., Westmark Y017 Monthly Meeting: 4th Wed., 7:30 p.m., YEU HallY023 Monthly Meeting: 1st Mon., Noon, City Municipal Svcs Bldg

StaffChristie Harper, Union Advisor; [email protected] Koser, Union Advisor; [email protected] Patterson, Union Advisor; [email protected] Huston, Intake Advisor; [email protected]

Shop Steward Round Table: 3rd Wed, 9am - noon, YEU Dawson Union Bbq (all Locals), Thurs. June 25, Dawson CityYEU Monthly Exec Meeting: 2nd Thurs., 6:30-9:00 pm, YEU Hall

Tammy Olsen, Financial Officer; [email protected] Turner-Davis, Media Relations & StrategicCommunications Officer: [email protected] Cuppage, Executive Assistant; [email protected] Hureau, Executive Director; [email protected]

Yukon Employees’ Union Office, 2285 2nd Avenue Whitehorse YT Y1A 1C9 PH: 867-667-2331 FX: 867-667-6521 Toll Free: 1-888-YEU-2331 Email us at [email protected] Visit www.yeu.ca, follow us on Facebook & Twitter or visit our blog; www.theunionbillboard.com

Offfice Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:30 am - 5:00 pm.

“Honourable Members, the current economic recession ishaving an impact on Yukon and its people far beyond any-thing that could have been foreseen six months ago.

The closure of the United Keno Hill mine at Elsa in com-bination with the closures already announced atWhitehorse Copper and Cyprus Anvil constitute a disasterto the Yukon economy as well as to the mining personnelthemselves and their immediate communities. It will beno surprise, therefore, that the Government of Yukon hasfound it necessary to undertake a program of retrench-ment in order to bring our spending plans in line with thefinancial resources available”.

On August 6, 1982 Pearson announced that the Yukon’sPublic Service Union had agreed to the government’s pro-

posal, cutting civil servant’s working hours by 10% as acost-cutting measure. This cut would be in effect untilMarch 31,‘83 and could save the government $2 million.

Pearson’s “9 day fortnight” program was clever; the payincrease was cancelled out by the reduction in hoursworked. YG’s Main Administration building and otheradministrative offices shut down every second Friday.Thus, most employees’ pay cheques remained unchangedwhile they enjoyed a long weekend every other week. Theunion faced little choice; cut backs or lay offs, the gov-ernment needed to cut costs.

Our thanks to the Yukon Archives for Whitehorse Starrecords and to past President Dave Hobbis for his recol-lections of this interesting period in YEU’s history.

Pearson’s 9 Day Fortnight (continued)

Learn more about YEU’s great line up of member benefits; Visit http://yeu.ca/for-members/benefits-of-membership/Visit http://yeu.ca/for-members/benefits-of-membership/

Learn more about YEU’s great line up of member benefits; Visit http://yeu.ca/for-members/benefits-of-membership/

n more about Visit http://yeu.ca/for-members/benefits-of-membership/

YEU s g eat Visit http://yeu.ca/for-members/benefits-of-membership/

ne up of mem Visit http://yeu.ca/for-members/benefits-of-membership/

Learn more about YEU’s great line up of member benefits; Learn more about YEU’s great line up of member benefits;

june 2015 yukon employees' union newsletter

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