Windsor Workers Action Centre

2007-12-13T15:41:00.000-08:00

Join Santa and the Windsor Workers' Action Centre on our Holiday BAD BOSS Holiday Pay TOUR Monday December 17th 9:00am sharp!

Meet at the Harvey's Restaurant Parking Lot, 2380 Wyandotte St. W Expect to return by 11:30 am at the latest Join Santa Claus, Workers' Action Centre and supporters as we say PAY UP to temp agencies that don't pay public holiday pay.

This Holiday BAD BOSS HOLIDAY PAY TOUR will be visiting three Windsor temp agencies on Santa's naughty list. These temp agencies refuse to pay holiday pay to temp agency workers, or they make up their own unfair and illegal rules on when they to pay (e.g. after 500 hours of employment). Because of these unfair practices, thousands of temp workers will receive no pay this Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. Workers are being pushed further into poverty because of this unequal treatment. Windsor Workers' Action Centre believes that temp workers should have the same rights and benefits as regular workers We'll be making short visits to each Temp Agency where Santa will deliver a letter of protest and hand out flyers on the holiday pay issue. The tour will finish with a visit to Sandra Pupatello's constituency office where Santa will deliver a letter requesting changes to employment standards legislation and enforcement. Please respond directly to the e-mail if you can come and we'll make sure you have a seat in one of our Santa tour vehicles. If you are willing to drive your own vehicle and take other people, we'd love to hear from you also and we'll get back to you on our needs.

2007-11-21T20:23:00.000-08:00

Todays action went very well. Despite the rain and overall bad weather about 40 people came out to support Patrick in his struggle with Sutherland Global Services.

2007-11-20T17:08:00.000-08:00

UNIONS
WHAT IS A UNION?
A union allows employees to bargain for rights collectively in the workplace
Once a union has been voted in by a majority of workers, the union represents all the workers in the bargaining unit
All members of the bargaining unit must pay union dues
The union has a duty to represent all members of the bargaining unit
WHO CAN JOIN A UNION?
Every employee has a right to join a union
Managers and foremen can not join unions
You do not have be a Canadian citizen to join a union
CAN WE CREATE OUR OWN UNION?
While it is possible to form your own union, this approach can be complicated
It is generally time consuming and expensive
Generally, already existing unions have a great deal of resources and expertise
CAN I BE FIRED FOR FORMING A UNION?
The employer is not allowed to fire you as a result of union activities
If an employee is fired for supporting a union, the Ontario Labour Relations Board can order that employee to be re-instated
The employer is not allowed to fire you for asserting your rights under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, the Human Rights Code or the Employment Standards Act
CAN THE COMPANY CLOSE IF WE UNIONIZE?
The employer is not allowed to close because in order to avoid a unionized workplace
However, if an employer chooses to discontinue its operations in Ontario, rather than work with a union, they can not be forced to re-open
CAN MY EMPLOYER INTERFERE WITH A UNION DRIVE?
The employer is not allowed to: use threats, intimidation, promises, undue influence, harassment, or change of employment (hours, shifts, wage, overtime, etc.) to discourage workers from joining a union
If an employer has done any of the above things, the Ontario Labour Relations Board can certify the union without holding a vote
The employer can not threaten to close the company
WHAT CAN MY EMPLOYER DO?
The employer can state that they prefer to operate without a union
Remind employees of the benefits they already have
Tell the employees that it is their decision
If union is making inaccurate statements the employer can respond
WHAT ARE ANTI-UNION CAMPAIGNS?
An anti-union campaign or “boss campaign” is what the employer will do to prevent the employees from forming a union
It will likely include intimidation, undue influence, and other acts that are prohibited by law
It is inevitable and will pick up alongside a union campaign
The question to ask yourself is what does the employer seek to lose in the formation of a union and how do they benefit from the lack of a union

2007-11-17T17:00:00.000-08:00

Solidarity Demonstration:Wednesday, November 21, 2007 at 12noon – 1pm.500 Ouellette Ave.

This demonstration is in solidarity with Patrick Fletcher who was recently fired by Sutherland Global Services, a local call centre in Windsor. Patrick, who is of First Nations descent, had experienced racially offensive comments from his Senior Operations Manger. Patrick obviously took issue with the senior official making derogatory reference to "you Indians." After discussing the verbal abuse with the Ontario Human Rights Commission, he took their advice to allow the company the opportunity to formally apologize. Receiving no response, Fletcher filed a formal human rights complaint with the Commission, which protects Ontarians from discrimination, including that based on race, ancestry, and ethnic origin. The Human Rights Code also "protects individuals from reprisal for trying to enforce their human rights".

Shortly after, Fletcher's employment with Sutherland was terminated, on what the company refers to as "just cause." Self-described as a "good employee" with no problems in the eight months he worked at the call centre, Fletcher was given no explanation for what this "just cause" was.Since his firing, Patrick Fletcher has engaged in a lone protest against Sutherland's human rights infractions, every week day from 9am to 1pm and has gained tremendous local support. While his picket outside the call centre may have started alone, he has been joined by representatives from the CAW, Labour Studies at the University of Windsor, Windsor Workers Action Centre, and local members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). Patrick is now relying on you to come out and demonstrate that workers in Windsor fully understand that an injury to one, is an injury to all.

- Labour Studies Student Association.

- Windsor Workers Action Centre.