NEWS & UPDATES
July 05, 2016
The BCGEU stands with Canada Post workers
Canada Post’s announcement that they will lock out Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) members as soon as Friday is an attack on collective bargaining, its workers and its customers.
Canada Post is refusing to do the work of collective bargaining with CUPW by demanding massive rollbacks on the union’s hard fought gains.
Those rollbacks include moving all new hires from a defined benefit...
June 30, 2016
BCGEU presses Canadian Prime Minister on Mexican teacher repression
Since mid-May, Mexican teachers have launched a nation-wide protest against new government measures that seek to shut down teacher (normal) training schools, base continued employment on teachers’ results on standardized written exams, and eliminate the need for pedagogical training for new teachers. The government’s response has been a wave of violence that includes the abduction and arbitrary...
June 29, 2016
Working Poverty in Metro Vancouver: the extent of the problem and realistic s...
Today the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) released a study on poverty in Vancouver. The report, Working Poverty in Metro Vancouver, presents sobering details on the increasing levels of poverty in the region. It also dispels an important myth about poverty: that getting a job will help lift a person out of poverty.
Poverty in B.C.’s largest city is increasingly a story of low pa...
June 28, 2016
Remember to Shop Public this holiday weekend
This week the BCGEU is reminding British Columbians to “Shop Public” at publicly operated BC Liquor Stores. You may hear the radio ads we are running across the province. You may see our Shop Public animation at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival this weekend.
There are lots of reasons to Shop Public: better prices and selection, extended shopping hours, Sunday and holiday openings, and...
June 24, 2016
Local 503 General/Executive Meeting
DATE: July 10, 2016
TIME: 1:00 am – Executive Meeting
12:00 pm – General Meeting (food will be served)
PLACE: BCGEU – Lower Mainland Office – Musqueam Room
Suite 130-2920 Virtual Way, Vancouver
Our new office is across the street from Renfrew Station.
If you are travelling by car and need underground parking, please phone or email the...
June 24, 2016
Keep Your Cool!
The recent hot weather in our province generated several calls to the BCGEU Occupational Health and Safety department. Members want to know if the employer has the responsibility to protect workers from hot temperatures both indoors and out. The short answer is “YES!”
The Workers Compensation Act Section 115 mandates that employers must ensure the health and safety of all workers working for t...
June 23, 2016
B.C. to allow larger sample sizes at liquor retailers
If you're hesitating to buy a pricey bottle of liquor you've never tried, the British Columbia government has stepped in with a taste-test solution. Read more...
June 22, 2016
Walsh wants store-in-store wine sales — and apologies from Kamloops MLAs
A Kamloops city councillor wants a provincial moratorium on grocery store wine sales — and an apology from local MLAs Todd Stone and Terry Lake. Read more...
June 20, 2016
BCGEU celebrates the 20th National Aboriginal Day
On June 21, 1996 the federal government declared the first National Aboriginal Day. Since that time, the BCGEU has joined the celebrations and the calls for increased support and recognition of Aboriginal peoples across Canada.
Over the course of those 20 years, Aboriginal peoples in Canada have fought for and won many advancements and reinforcements of their rights – sometimes through govern...
June 20, 2016
June 2016 Safety Tip - Preventing Ergonomic Injuries
June 20th is the first day of summer, so the days will be getting warmer. This usually results in more patrons coming through our doors, so your workload will increase. Don’t let this increased workload result in an ergonomic injury.
We need to be aware of our posture, as well as the size and shape of the loads we have to lift and any repetitive movements. These are all risk factors that can c...
June 20, 2016
BCGEU demands freedom for Iranian trade unionists
In solidarity with the Free Them Now campaign to free jailed workers in Iran, the BCGEU sent two letters demanding the release of Jafar Azimzadeh and other jailed trade union leaders. Click here to read the general solidarity letter, and click here for the the more specific letter.
June 16, 2016
Local 504 meeting
DATE: Tuesday June 28, 2016
TIME: Dinner: 6:30 p.m.
General Meeting: 7:00 p.m.
PLACE: 8555 198A Street, Langley Twp V2Y 0A9 (use Twp if using map search)
AGENDA
1. Introductions
2. Adoption of Agenda
3. Adoption of Previous Minutes
4. Officers/Stewards/Chair Reports
5. Grievance Report
6. Old Business
7. New Business
8. Goods and Welfare
9. Next Meeting Date
10. Adjournment
Please...
June 16, 2016
Canadians acknowledge contributions of public service workers
June 13-17 is Public Services Week in Canada. Coast to coast to coast, it’s a chance for Canadians to acknowledge the valuable contributions made by workers in the public service. Public services are central to the social and economic fabric of our communities, our province and our country.
Each and every one of us benefits from the contributions made by public services workers every day. They...
June 15, 2016
Liquor Distribution Branch: serving our province for 95 years
June 15 marks the 95th anniversary of B.C.’s Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB). The LDB came into existence on this day in 1921. At the time, residents 21 years of age and older had to pay $5 for an annual permit to buy alcohol. Eighty products were available for sale at nine government operated stores.
Today there are many more public stores and many more products for sale. But one thing has n...
BCGEU Headquarters is on the unceded and shared traditional territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skxwú7mesh (Squamish) & Səlí̓ lwətaʔ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples.