CUPE National President Judy Darcy told the delegates attending the Prince Edward Island Division Convention in Friday May 15th they should be proud of their work against the privatiztion of public services.
Darcy praised the efforts of Island CUPE members from bringing the issue of a shortage of physicians on Prince Edward Island to the legislature, and their lobby to keep health and social services out of the Agreement on Internal Trade.
“We knew that if health and social services were included in the Agreement on Internal Trade it would make privatization a whole lot easier, she said. “There are a number of other issues where I know you have been taking stands - the Athena consolidated school where the government wanted to let a private company build and own the school.
Darcy pointed to other privatization issues occurring on the Island, including the contracting out of water and sewer work in Charlottetown, and the situation with Superior Sanitation, where one company is buying up all of the smaller haulers in the province.
“And worst of all, the prospect of a hospital in this province, for the first time, being built as part of a public private partnership, Darcy said.
The president of the Division is Bill McKinnon. The Secretary-treasurer is Donalda MacDonald. There are about 2,000 CUPE members in P.E.I.