November 18, 2020

WINNIPEG—Elections Manitoba has dismissed all complaints filed against Unifor by the Progressive Conservative Party during the 2019 provincial election.

“Brian Pallister attempted to use Manitoba’s election financing laws to bully one of his most effective critics. He failed,” said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. “Pallister was looking for any excuse to distract voters from his record in office.”

During the 2019 provincial election, the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba held a media conference to denounce Unifor’s voter mobilization campaign and announce official complaints. The subsequent investigation overseen by the Manitoba Commissioner of Elections found no evidence that Unifor violated The Election Financing Act.

At the time, Unifor shrugged off the accusations and chalked it up to an effort by Pallister to distract voters from his record on emergency room closures, mismanagement of Manitoba Hydro, and rollbacks of workers’ rights.

“Whether it is mismanaging Manitoba Hydro or bungling the pandemic response, Pallister’s first instinct is to point the finger at somebody else,” said Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor Western Regional Director. “Rather than smear its critics, the Pallister government must take responsibility for its many failings.”

Unifor is Canada’s largest union in the private sector, representing 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.