BURNABY— The recent efforts in Wisconsin and some other American states by radical right-wing governments to strip public sector workers of the right to collective bargaining has potentially huge ramifications for Canadian public sector workers as well. CUPE has been an active participant in recent rallies in the US to protest these divisive and punitive policies.
Canadian unions stand in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in the US. On Monday night in Burnaby, Sister Betsy Kippers, vice-president of the 100,000 member Wisconsin Education Association Council, has agreed to brief BC union members on the situation in her state.
We invite you to join us for this briefing session.
Time: 5:00 PM
Date: Monday, March 21, 2011
Place: Operating Engineers Hall
4333 Ledger Ave., Burnaby
At the same time, we’ll be discussing our additional solidarity efforts here in BC. First up, there will be a demonstration outside a Bank of Montreal shareholder meeting in Vancouver on Tuesday March 22. Wisconsin activists will be attending the meeting to protest BMO’s financial support of the Wisconsin Republicans.
And a couple of weeks later, there will be an international solidarity rally at Peace Arch Park on the afternoon of April 2. (Click here to download a poster for the rally, and check back to www.cupe.bc.ca for more details about the event, including transportation arrangements.)
This isn’t just about Wisconsin. Please join us in our efforts to mobilize opposition to the same anti-union agenda currently being promoted by the Coalition of BC Business and the Fraser Institute here in British Columbia. Over the coming weeks, we must demonstrate that these attacks on the rights of workers and the well-being of North America’s working families will not go unanswered.
