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Vancouver – Paul Moist, national president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), will address the BC division convention on Thursday, April 17th at 11:00 am at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Vancouver.

While congratulating division members on their ongoing efforts to protect public services and build better communities, Moist will raise pointed questions about public infrastructure projects that would expand the very P3 model CUPE opposes such as the billion-dollar sewage initiative underway in Victoria.

In support of the convention theme of “Building Sustainable Communities”, Moist will call on members to keep up the fight for strong public services as part of the organization’s 5 million dollar pan-Canadian anti-privatization campaign.

Delegates will also have the opportunity to hear first-hand accounts of the struggles of the 252 workers of the Journal de Québec newspaper who have been locked-out for a year by Quebecor/Sun Media Corporation. Two representatives of the locked-out workers will be introduced to delegates on Thursday, April 17th at 11:30 am.

“The situation of these media workers in Quebec bears tremendous impact on the quality of news, journalism, and freedom of the press in Canada,” says Moist.

Moist sees this visit and presentation as an occasion to acknowledge the important collaboration between the national union and the BC division in “challenging privatization in all its forms, including P3s and corporate or legislative attempts to destroy public services, as well as in joining forces with community members everywhere who want to stop the growth in private sector takeovers of public services.”

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The Canadian Union of Public Employees is Canada’s largest union and represents over 570,000 members across Canada.

Journal de Québec lockout, freedom of the press: cupe.ca/journaldequebec

For information or interviews: Roseanne Moran, CUPE BC Communications, 778.835.7537 (cell); Louise Leclair, Director, CUPE Communications, 613.314.7199 (cell)