United Steelworkers (FTQ) 44th Annual Meeting - Understanding in order to Act

TROIS-RIVIÈRES, QC, Nov. 19 /CNW Telbec/ - Daniel Roy, Quebec Director of United Steelworkers (FTQ), is currently addressing the 500 delegates and guests of the 44th annual meeting taking place in Trois-Rivières. According to the needs expressed by delegates to last year's meeting, the Director further examined the question of political activism by using factual examples drawn from Quebec's history, the financial crisis and current political events. He relayed his conclusions: "Political parties in Quebec, he says, subscribe to a neoliberal mindset. Healthcare privatization, implementation of private-public partnerships, misuse of the Caisse de dépôt et placement's economic mandate, income tax cuts and laxness in protecting the French language are just a few examples. The determination of the union movement and of other vibrant forces in our society has been able to stop certain processes, such as preventing the privatization of Mont Orford. However, the political will to realize this program is still alive. We have no choice. We need to get involved."

"The Bloc québécois's victory in the federal elections is a good example of what we can do when we stand together. We could not allow a majority conservative government to be elected, especially one who sponsored financial cuts in culture, tougher youth laws, misappropriation of surplus funds to favour the wealthy and other measures focusing on values such as individualism, economic laisser-faire and military power", stated Daniel Roy.

The Right Won't Go Quietly

"Money is flowing freely to bail out the new economic religion, observes Daniel Roy. The decisions guiding this rescue are all politically motivated. To make sure this is not just another flash in the pan and that our political elites return to business as usual once the crisis has past, we need to become politically active. Before this September's stock market debacle, some sixty bankers liquidated their institutions' shares in the amount of 55 million dollars. Despite the stricter regulations that exist here when compared to the United States, the five big Canadian banks literally stole, from the Canadian government and from each province, 16 billion dollars in income taxes to store away in various tax havens. We cannot allow decisions that affect millions of people to be made behind the closed doors of private enterprise. Democracy is at stake. The State is one of the many tools at our disposal. We need to strengthen it and stand together to stop the destruction of Quebec's collective economic development tools and public services. At the federal level, what were our elected officials doing while these Canadian banks were busy committing tax evasion? Did they not sign tax agreements in due form with those same countries being used as tax havens?"

Healthcare as an Example

The example of public healthcare has long been a favourite since it represents the dangers faced by labour unions and the population as a whole. "Right-wing politicians, some physicians and insurance companies are quivering in anticipation of making a fortune in healthcare, explains the Quebec Director. Barely 40 years ago, the conditions that prevailed in Quebec before the application of the Loi sur l'assurance-maladie (Health Services Care Insurance Act), meant that getting healthcare, getting sick or being hospitalized was synonymous with financial ruin, bankruptcy or worse, death. One of our members in Mont-Joli, in the lower St-Laurence region, told us about his father who, after a bout with jaundice, spent 37 years paying off his debt. Our negotiations are already tarnished with pressure from employers to pass on the cost increases of group insurance plans. Providing more healthcare and services to private insurance is not only taking them away from the public healthcare system, it's a straight path to major increases in premiums, decreased coverage, difficult negotiations in terms of group insurance plans and ultimately, an increase in labour disputes."

The reflection set in motion by the Director will come full circle with speeches from Alain Noël, political scientist at the Université de Montréal and Bernard Élie, economist at the Université du Québec à Montréal. To follow is a viewing of unreleased movie by René Lévesque titled "Le vrai syndicalisme, pourquoi" filmed on June 18, 1965. We see him as minister of Natural Resources addressing union members as part of a labour union course. The film has never been publicly released and will be shown exclusively Thursday morning, November 20, 2008. At noon, the United Steelworkers will be holding a joint press conference with the Cinémathèque québécoise in which the film will be officially donated to this great public institution of Quebec

Furthermore, the task force put into service last year to study political activism will be issuing a report that proposes, among other things, the implementation of a network focused specifically on political activity.

United Steelworkers is the largest private sector union in Quebec and represents 60,000 members in Quebec.