Our National Executive Board met September 20-22, 2016 in Ottawa. These are the highlights of their deliberations and decisions.
In Memory
The National Executive Board (NEB) observed a minute of silence to reflect upon
the loss of members in our CUPE family. Remembered were: Sister Karen Stout-Smith, Local 650; Sister Cindy Kuzek, Local 4875; Brother Art Kingsnorth, Local 1858; Brother Richard Hare, Local 2950; Sister Ruth Shymka, Local 2550; Brother Owen Dykstra, Local 23 (former President of CUPE BC, retired); Brother Richard Gates, Local 15 (retired); Brother Barry Sacerty, Local 1858 (retired); Brother Bill Doherty, Local 50 (retired); Sister Sharon Graham, staff – Sault Ste Marie Area Office; Brother Alistair Mackenzie, staff – Saskatchewan Regional Office; Brother Michael Stokes, staff – Niagara Area Office; Brother Neil Bradbury, retired staff – British Columbia Regional Office; Brother Gordon Allan, retired staff – London Area Office.
New Member of the Board
Sister Marie-Josée Alvarez joined the NEB as the new Regional Vice-President representing Quebec, having been elected by the National Executive Board from the nominations received from the chartered organizations in that province. Sister Alvarez was sworn in at the start of the meeting.
NEB Resolution – Post-Secondary Education
The NEB adopted a resolution endorsing the Canadian Federation of Students’ call for public, high-quality, post-secondary education that is accessible by all Canadians, and to endorse and encourage our members to participate in the CFS National Day of Action being held November 2, 2016. See the full resolution here.
NEB Committee – Diversity Representation
The NEB created a sub-committee to review the creation of additional Diversity Vice-President positions on the National Executive Board. The sub-committee is tasked with bringing recommendations to the Board that will form the basis of a constitutional amendment for submission to the 2017 National Convention. The sub-committee will complete its work and report to the NEB prior to the start of next year’s provincial division conventions.
National Strike Fund Task Force
The NEB unanimously adopted the report and recommendations of the National Strike Fund Task Force. The Task Force was created following the 2015 National Convention, as mandated by the 2015-2017 Strategic Directions document. Some of the changes resulting from their recommendations include:
- A reduced waiting period, from 9 to 4 days. Strike pay now commences on the fifth day of a strike.
- An increase to the reimbursement for costs associated with interest arbitration, to 90% from 75%.
- The regulations will now be reviewed automatically every four years.
All changes came into effect on September 22. You can find the updated National Strike Fund regulations online at http://cupe.ca/national-strike-fund-regulations.
Report of the National Trustees
Our three national trustees, Mark Goodwin from Ontario, Christian Trudeau from Québec, and Karen Ranalletta from British Columbia presented their findings for the year 2015. The trustees found the books to be in good order. They congratulated Brothers Fleury, Hancock and Moist for their efforts over the past year.
Financial Support
The National Executive Board approved 22 cost-share campaign requests totaling $1,305,468.88, and 9 requests for legal support were approved, totaling $221,993.70.
