The 7 day Chief Steward Nomination period is now open as of April 22 2021, nominations must be received by Fax (416-538-1997) no later than      April 30 2021 at 10:00am EST.

Please follow the instructions on the nomination form itself to correctly indicate your current division and location as well as information and times etc….       see sample nomination attached below

 

• Chief Steward Eligibility: Nominees must have been elected in the March 2021 Steward Elections for Local 1996-O

 

• Due to Covid-19 restrictions if you are unable to obtain signatures from nominators, indicate in the signature field the nominator’s contact phone number which will be confirmed

 

Sample Nomination Form (This is a sample only)

Sample – Nomination Form Chief Stewards 2021

 

Download 2021 Chief Steward Nomination Form here

Nomination Form Chief Steward 2021

 

 

The deadline is fast approaching to get your application submitted.

We in Local 1996-O are concerned about the lives of our members’ families and their education.  Due to high tuition fees we recognize that post-secondary education is out of reach for many working-class. To assist, we’ve established 2 scholarships worth $1,000.00 each. One in memory of the late Brother, Milos Petrasinovic and Brother, Alwa Marcelle.

The scholarships are awarded to sons/daughters of Unifor 1996-O members in good standing.  Students must be entering their first year of full-time post-secondary education (university, community college, technological institute, trade school, etc.) in a public Canadian institution. 

These are entrance Scholarships only and are not renewable for students entering subsequent years of study.

Deadline for submitting an application is June 04 2021

The selection of candidates will be chosen no later than July 09, 2021 and will be final.

Click the link to download the 2020 application

2021-Unifor-Local-1996-O-Scholarship

 

 

In Solidarity,

 

1996-O Executive,

Lee, Sanjay, Brian, Chris

Source

https://www.ccohs.ca/events/mourning/

Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety

 

Show your commitment

 

April 21, 2021

TORONTO – Unifor is demanding pandemic pay and priority vaccine access for workers at grocery stores and warehouses, as COVID-19 case numbers skyrocket and cases of the more contagious variants of concern increase.

“It’s shameless that grocery giants like Loblaws and Metro refuse to reinstate pandemic pay for these frontline workers, who continue to face the risk of going to work when many are at home in lockdown in various regions of the country,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. “How in good conscience can billionaire Galen Weston and the boards of these companies deny the fairness of pandemic pay as they rake in massive profits on the backs of predominantly part-time, low-wage essential workers?”

Unifor members are presently experiencing COVID-19 workplace transmission in grocery stores, with multiple confirmed cases among workers, but are still denied danger pay or accelerated access to vaccination.

While Unifor recognizes Empire Company Ltd. for reinstating pandemic pay to workers at its Sobeys, Longos, Foodland, FreshCo, Farm Boy, Voila by Sobeys, some IGA locations, and warehouses in regions with stay-at-home orders, the move fails to recognize the genuine risk to all of its frontline retail workers.

Metro has also fallen short, opting instead to provide employees with store gift cards. Both Metro and Loblaw Companies Ltd. have repeatedly refused to reinstate pandemic pay, provided for 12 weeks at the start of the first wave of COVID-19 by most major grocery chains.

In June 2020, Unifor opposed the decision by Canada’s largest grocers to end pandemic pay of $2 an hour for employees. The union launched the Fair Pay Forever campaign to call for historic inequities in the sector to be corrected.

“To add insult to injury, these are corporations that refuse sick pay for the vast majority of employees while they rely on a part-time workforce tied to a minimum wage strategy to avoid committing to decent full-time jobs,” said Dias. “Loblaw likes to point the finger at Walmart and others to justify their race to the bottom strategy, yet Galen Weston still finds a way to pay himself, his executives and his shareholders vast amounts of money.”

Unifor is calling on provincial governments to expedite the vaccination of all essential workers, including grocery store and warehouse, to reduce the risk to these frontline COVID-heroes and to the communities they serve.

“These workers have to go to work so we can eat. Full stop. Period. They are the definition of essential yet they are not being prioritized for vaccination,” Dias said.

The union urgently seeks the expansion of frontline and essential workers eligible to receive the vaccine and for paid time off for workers to receive their shots.

Unifor is Canada’s largest union in the private sector and represents 315,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad, and strives to create progressive change for a better future.

April 22, 2021

TORONTO – Unifor continues to demand the immediate introduction of permanent, employer-paid sick leave as Premier Doug Ford delays action, shifts the blame and abandons essential workers, as ICU’s fill to capacity.

“I’m not the only Ontarian left stunned by the Premier’s lack of action, empathy or understanding of this public health crisis,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “Apologizing for ignoring the advice of scientists, doctors and frontline workers does not erase the mounting pain and suffering of this pandemic. Ford has the power to protect workers, and still, he refuses to enact paid sick days and prioritize essential workers.”

On Thursday, April 22, the province reported 40 new deaths, more than 800 COVID-19 patients in ICU, and nearly 3,700 new cases. As ICUs fill, Ornge paramedics airlift vulnerable patients out of Toronto to seek care in other regions of the province.

In a news conference this morning, Ford failed again to announce any new public health measures, instead hinting at an upcoming announcement for a band-aid solution to supplement the insufficient Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit.

“Paid sick leave is a provincial responsibility, it’s Doug Ford’s responsibility. Hundreds more will die and become infected before he chooses to enact even the smallest measure of provincial paid sick leave,” said Naureen Rizvi, Unifor Ontario Regional Director. “The anger is swelling in this province, and it is rightfully directed at the Premier’s own lack of leadership and refusal to face facts.”

The province’s own Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table recommended paid sick days as one of the six things that will work to reduce transmission, protect our health care system, and allow us to re-open safely as soon as possible.

A new poll, commissioned by Unifor, reveals that the vast majority of Ontarians support the implementation of legislated sick days.

The Union continues to advocate for universal paid sick days to be enshrined in labour law in Ontario. Unifor advocates for a provincial sick leave policy that includes:

• 7 permanent paid sick days;
• 14 additional paid sick days during a declared public health emergency;
• Universality (i.e. it applies to all workers, regardless of status);
• A prohibition on sick notes;
• Flexible (i.e. not just for short-term illness; more akin to “personal emergency” days);
• Employer-paid;
• No administrative burden.

 To support this demand, visit the Paid Sick Days campaign.

Unifor is Canada’s largest union in the private sector and represents 315,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad, and strives to create progressive change for a better future.