Greetings!
Please forward this to your retiree organizations and/or retiree activists with your Local Lodge.

As you may be aware, the Congress of Union Retirees of Canada is holding their Thirteenth (13th) Convention this fall, from September 19thto 21st. CURC is a retirees organization of the Canadian Labour Congress, and is certain to have many socially-progressive and like-minded members of affiliated Labour organizations in attendance.

The CURC Convention is being held in Toronto, and I wanted to be sure you had the opportunity to discuss this with your Local Lodge and retirees groups, and to send a delegation if anyone is interested. There is also a great deal of additional information, including the CURC Constitution, on their comprehensive website shown below:

CURC’s 13th Constitutional Convention 2018

Thank you for your assistance in this regard.
Cheers and Solidarity,

Stan Pickthall
General Vice President

Toronto, ON – To say that the IAM’s new Organizing initiative has been successful would be an understatement with 3,253 new members joining the Canadian ranks since January 1, 2018.

To keep that momentum going there has been a strong emphasis placed on forming Local Lodge and District Lodge Organizing Committees to assist organizers in growing the union. On May 10-11th, IAM Grand Lodge Organizer Scott Jackson, IAM District Lodge 78 Business Representative/Organizer Ropy Bhansingh and IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 Organizer Sam Jabbar, facilitated Local Organizing Committee training for Districts 78 and 140.

“Under the new Grand Lodge Organizing initiative, we educated the committees that not every industry or group is suitable for the IAM or its Districts to organize,” explained Jackson. “We utilize the SWOT principle, which means on any given target, we study its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. In some cases the opportunities may be there but the potential threats to success may outweigh the strengths and so on.”

“We described the use of existing membership to find and develop new targets,” said Bhansingh. “An organizer can only do so much on their own, organizing is very much as team undertaking. We explained the difference between a lead and a target and how to find both. We also conducted role playing on how to talk to a cold lead.”

Dear Machinists Union Family and Friends,
Today marks the 130th anniversary of the founding of our great union. We have come a long way since 19 machinists met in secret to begin this journey. It is a testament to our membership that we have grown into one of the most powerful voices for working people the world has ever seen.
When I look back at our past, it makes me even more hopeful about our future. Throughout our history, we have joined together and spoken with one voice to win monumental victories for human, civil and workers’ rights. Today I see working people—union and non-union—rising up and demanding a better life for our families and our communities.
In our own union, I see our members becoming more aggressive and standing up to companies and politicians that attack our way of life. Our union is growing again because word is spreading that there is no one better to have on your side than the men and women of the Machinists Union. The products we make and the services we provide continue to be on the cutting edge of technology and of the highest quality.
We have a lot to be proud of—and a lot to look forward to in the years ahead. Congratulations, Machinists. I can’t wait to see where our next chapter takes us.
In solidarity,
Bob Martinez, International President

On May 1st, 2018, a party of members and spouses of Local 1863 Retirees Club visited the newly opened craft brewery, Cowbell Brewing Company, in the village of Blyth, ON. Following an extensive tour of the brewery and lunch, the party continued to the workshop of Mr. Everett Hessel, who is an enthusiast and restorer of Model A Ford cars.

Attached images of the brewery building’s exterior and interior, together with a group picture. Also an image of some of Mr. Hessel’s restored Model A Ford cars.

IAM members met with federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh today in Toronto, to present him with a petition signed by over 6,000 IAM members.
The petition demands that the government not privatize Canada’s airports; something that is being considered by our present Liberal government.
By changing the current airport model into a for-profit scheme, costs will rise as they already have in places such as the UK and Australia,
where higher rents and fees became a reality once fully privatized, despite assurances to the contrary. The increased costs were passed on from the airport
authorities to the airlines and finally down to the passenger. We should learn from others’ mistakes and stop the privatization now!
The IAM is Canada’s largest air transport Union. Pictured above with Jagmeet is IAM District 78 Political Action Co-ordinator Jerry Jarosz.

Local 1863 Retirees Club organized an outing for its members. This was a visit to Westlake Maple Products, Bayfield, Ontario, and a tour of the sugar bush and maple syrup evaporator owned and operated by Ron Westlake, who is a retired IAM&AW LL 1863 union brother.
Attached are two photos showing the visitors in the sugar bush, and at the sugar shack with the latest equipment that Ron has invested in to produce the end products.

Continue reading →

Toronto, On – Members of the Canadian Union of Labour Representatives, employed by the Canadian Labour Congress, are the newest members of the IAM.
“We are delighted that the 46 Canadian Labour Congress Staff Representatives have decided to join a progressive international union, the IAM,” said IAM Canadian General Vice President Stan Pickthall. “The IAM prides itself on being a grassroots organization that listens to its members and works with them on issues at all levels of our movement.”

Toronto, ON – International Women’s Day is annually held on March 8 to celebrate women’s achievements throughout history and across nations. It is also known as the United Nations (UN) Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace.

It is a day when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political. “At least for one day, it highlights the work performed by women, our participation, not only in the workplace but in our communities as well,” explains Heather Kelley – IAM Grand Lodge Representative for Women’s Issues. “This has been a long and hard fought struggle just to get women some kind of recognition that we are actually people and that we have rights. The Labour movement has been a significant contributor in the fight for our rights and recognition.”

Union Brother Donald R. Watson passed away March 02, 2018 at the age of 69 years.
Don was hired at Champion/Volvo Motor Graders in Goderich, Ontario, Canada in the Fabrication Sheet Metal Department on Jan. 29, 1973, at that time becoming a member of IAM&AW LL 1863
(now LL 1975). Donald retired in June 2009.

Donald’s funeral was held at the Needham Funeral Service, 520 Dundas St., London, Ontario, Canada on March 07, 2018.

IAM District 78 is training up the next bunch of future Union leaders today, at the Toronto office.
“Ensuring that our stewards have the skills to do their job at the workplace, is vital to the future of the Labour Movement”,
stated Basic Stewards facilitator Colin Cherry.