Paul Moist, National President
June 22, 2009 03:32 PM
Paul Moist was first elected in 2003 as leader of Canada’s largest union with over 600,000 members.
Moist has been a member of CUPE since 1975. He worked for 10 years as a national staff representative, and served for an additional 10 years as president of CUPE Local 500, representing 5,500 municipal workers in Winnipeg. He also served six years as president of CUPE Manitoba provincial division.
Moist has used his leadership to speak out on behalf of working Canadians in defence of labour rights. He never misses an opportunity to address issues such as the economy, globalization, pensions and free collective bargaining. Moist has also worked to hold all levels of government accountable for the well-being of Canadian workers.
During his time as national president, Moist has led the union in its fight against privatization, and has maintained cooperative dialogue with labour leaders around the world to encourage international solidarity on trade issues. Moist has also intensified CUPE’s commitment to building strong communities, with emphasis on defending quality public health care and education, empowering municipalities, and advocating for affordable and accessible public child care.
Moist serves as a vice-president of the 3 million-member Canadian Labour Congress, and as a governor of the Labour College of Canada. He also sits on the Manitoba Blue Cross Board of Directors.
In addition, he has served as vice-chair of the Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation; co-chair of the Premier’s Economic Advisory Council in Manitoba; treasurer of the United Way of Winnipeg; director of Misericordia Health Centre; director of the Winnipeg Library Foundation and was an executive member of the Manitoba Federation of Labour for 20 years.
Moist is CUPE’s fifth national president and the first from Western Canada. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Manitoba, where he studied Canadian history and political science. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife and two children.
Paul Moist publicity photo, JPEG format 2848 by 4288 pixels
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