R&F.ca Weekly Update

Details: Published on Friday, 11 September 2015 03:00; Written by editor

R&F.ca Weekly Update r1 ... Vote No: An open letter to OSSTF members | This Labour Day, let's remember five forgotten stories of struggle | Prairie region: Writer/Organizer | Labour Day 2015 in photos s16
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VOTE NO: AN OPEN LETTER TO OSSTF MEMBERS

By Jason Kunin, Seth Bernstein, and Amina Ally

After nearly a year of negotiations, during which time we were without a collective agreement, the Provincial Executive of our union, Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF), has reached a tentative agreement with the Liberal government. As OSSTF members, we cannot vote in favour of this agreement and we urge our fellow members to vote no on September 16, when we will be asked to ratify it.

For three years, we have seen our incomes eroded by a legislated wage freeze, forced unpaid days off, and delayed grid movement. The proposed agreement does not compensate for these lost wages. While conservative estimates generally put inflation at 2% a year, the price of food and, in Toronto, housing, have gone up much more rapidly. A one-time 1% signing bonus does nothing to change the fact that we are being asked to accept a mere 1.5% raise after half a decade, a raise that would actually see the real value of our incomes eroded by roughly 10%. Read more!

THIS LABOUR DAY, LET'S REMEMBER FIVE FORGOTTEN STORIES OF STRUGGLE

By Dan Darrah

Facing his death on the gallows in 1887, August Spies shouted, “The day will come when our silence will be more powerful than the voices you strangle today.”

Spies was a labour activist and newspaper editor in Chicago. He, along with seven other Chicago anarchists, were found guilty of a conspiracy to bomb a labour rally they hosted, at which seven police officers and four civilians were killed.

The rally was in response to the killing of striking workers the day before, fighting for an eight hour work day. This came to be known as the Haymarket affair, and marked the first “May Day” – the international observance day for workers. Read more!

PRAIRIE REGION: WRITER/ORGANIZER

Thanks to a generous donation from the Regina & District Labour Council (RDLC), RankandFile.ca is hiring a Prairie Region Writer/Organizer for a six-month position. This is a 6 month contract with a $1,500 honorarium (approximately $125/article). With thousands of readers from across the country, this is an excellent opportunity to promote labour issues amongst a national audience.

The new hire will work closely with our editorial team to both produce new content for the website and develop new contacts, writers, and readers. The new hire will also be expected to produce at least two original news story a month, solicit stories from local activists, and to signup readers to our weekly email list. Read more!

LABOUR DAY 2015 IN PHOTOS

We present you a photo essay of labour day 2015 from west to east. If your town or city did not appear please email us a picture and we will include it.