Our National Executive Board met June 20-22, 2017 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 Judy Lavallee, Local 1550; Sister Lisa Langridge, Local 148; Brother Ron Bodenham, Local 504; Sister Diana Chicoine, Local 416; Brother John Dillon, Local 4557; Sister Heather Williams-Patterson, Local 7575; Sister Susan Scollen, Local 1858; Brother Michael Webb, Local 30; Brother Greg Friesen, Local 30; Brother Clarence Lacombe, retired staff, Alberta.
General Vice-President
Sister Judy Henley was sworn in as our new General Vice-President. As is our practice for General Vice-President vacancies between national conventions, following the resignation of Sister Kelly Moist, Sister Judy was elected by the NEB from the nominations received from the provincial divisions in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Chartered bodies in Saskatchewan have been invited to nominate a Regional Vice‑President to serve the remainder of the term.
NEB Resolution – North American Free Trade Agreement
With the US government having served notice to open negotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement, the NEB adopted a resolution calling on the Canadian government to ensure that the interests of workers and our environment are their first priority throughout negotiations. See the full resolution at cupe.ca/nafta-resolution.
National Convention
Preparations are well under way for the 28th CUPE National Convention, being held October 2-6 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Sector Council meetings will be held on October 1. The NEB adopted some key constitutional amendments and policy resolutions to place in front of the convention. They also considered an initial draft of an Organizing Paper, and an outline of Strategic Directions for 2017-2019. NEB members will work over the summer to further develop these documents for convention.
Humanitarian Support
The NEB made a special contribution of $50,000 to Oxfam Canada’s emergency response fund to the drought and famine in East Africa, where famine has been declared in parts of South Sudan, drought has caused crops to fail in parts of Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya, and millions are facing starvation.
Financial Support
The NEB approved 20 cost-share campaign requests totaling $555,646.69, and eight requests for legal and arbitration support were approved, totaling $333,494.96.
2016 Audited Financial Statements
Deloitte, our external auditing firm, presented the 2016 audited financial statements for our General Fund, our National Strike Fund, and our National Defence Fund.
Trustees’ Report
Our three national trustees, Mark Goodwin from Ontario, Karen Ranalletta from British Columbia, and Christian Trudeau from Quebec, presented their findings for the year 2016. The trustees found the books to be in excellent order. They congratulated Brother Fleury for his work over the past year and thanked staff for their assistance. The NEB said farewell to Brother Goodwin, who announced he would not reoffer for another term at the national convention. The NEB thanked him for his work over his six‑year term as a national trustee.
