Winnipeg workers organize

By Yvonne Gordon

Photo courtesy of Winnipeg 900M

Working on proposals for bargaining at the newly organized Cornet Fahlke Printing Ltd. are, from left, Winnipeg 900M Pres. Colin D. Lang; Rick Guarino, prepress; and Jeff Kveder and Frank Detelic, pressmen.

In times past, organizers and shop stewards have found it difficult to interest young workers and new hires in pension plans. Although strong pension plans have always been among organized labor's strongest contract benefits, recruiting on the issue of retirement has not been easy. Recently, leaders of Winnipeg 900M noticed that times have changed. Younger workers and new hires are definitely interested in pension plans.

Local 900M Pres. Colin D. Lang pointed out that "for the most part, there seems to be a tendency in Canada for workers to be looking more toward job security and their pension. They are fearful that the Canada Pensions are underfunded and they are concerned about that."

The most recent organizing victory for Local 900M clearly demonstrated the fact. Workers at Cornet Fahlke Printing Ltd. called the local and indicated an interest in unionizing their shop. The workers had already had a meeting and knew that a majority were in favor of unionizing. The first meeting took place on Feb. 8.

On Feb. 12, GCIU Organizer Duncan K. Brown, organizing coordinator for Canada, went with Local 900M Vice Pres. Wayne Melvin to a group meeting with the workers. Brown said: "They had been thinking about [unionizing] over the years. They finally decided now was the time to do it." At that meeting, 15 of the 28 workers signed union authorization cards.

Melvin said it became clear that "wages weren't an issue and the benefits were pretty good." He said that at the first group meeting, one of the workers summed it up by saying that the employees wanted "empowerment" in their workplace.

According to Melvin, the organizing campaign was worker run. He said: "They put it all together. They passed the word around." It took just more than two weeks for the workers to unite. The first call was on Feb. 8. The vote was on Feb. 24. In Manitoba, all certifications have to go to a vote. The workers voted "Union Yes!" 20 to 6.

Both Lang and Melvin noted that the employer was not combative. Melvin said: "He was very philosophical about it. He said: 'If that's what the people want, then it's fine with me.' He's actually looking forward to sitting down and negotiating a contract."

Lang praised Jeff Kveder and Don Miller, two employees that he referred to as "the shakers and movers" at the full-service, sheetfed, commercial printing shop. He also praised the employer. "He is very good," Lang said, noting that after the vote, he was invited to the employer's office. He said the employer wanted "to try find out what was expected of him."

Lang said: "At first the boss was taken aback, but he can kind of understand where [the employees] are coming from." Lang noted that there is rising concern about economic security among workers in Canada.

"The mood is changing in Canada about organizing," he said. He added: "We've been receiving phone calls out of the blue from the non-union sector. They see that shareholder and corporate profits are rising in a much higher proportion [than their benefits]. We've seen [benefits] eroded over the last eight or nine years under the right-wing government and now people are really starting to become concerned. And they are looking to the labor movement to help apply the brakes."

There is a growing concern, Lang added, over pension plans. Nowadays, he said, "generally speaking, the population is better educated" about pension plans. He added that the workers think that "the government safety nets may not be there in the future. And they see unions as a backup."

Lang said that the workers at Cornet Fahlke Printing Ltd. "wanted to be masters of their own destiny. That was a major issue."

He said that the contract proposals were nearly finalized, that management hired a labor lawyer – one that Lang bargains with on some five other agreements – and the workers at Cornet Fahlke Printing Ltd. have their wish.