The Fort Frances and District Labour Council is making a return after a three-decade hiatus, with plans to pick up where it left off representing the rights of the local workforce.
The Fort Frances and District Labour Council disbanded in 1996 after first losing steam under the NDP government of the early 1990s and then facing cuts made under the administration of Conservative Premier Mike Harris, who took office in 1995. An unsuccessful attempt to revive the council was made in 2019.
Now, the council, which aims to provide a stronger voice for local branches of unions when pushing back against government cuts that affect workers and service users, says there’s a different energy at play.
“I think people just lost energy at that point and I think people are a little more fired up right now because we’re heading back into a similar kind of mode here,” council treasurer Cynthia Woodland told The Times, referring to labour reaction to the current Doug Ford government.
The Fort Frances and District Labour Council is a member of the Canadian Labour Congress, the largest labour organization in Canada, which is affiliated with unions, federations and other local councils and represents over three million workers nationwide.
“We’re under the umbrella of the Canadian Labour Congress, so we follow their guidelines,” Woodland said. “It started to make sure worker rights are being upheld. Which is what we want to focus on locally. Overworking, child labour laws, retirement, better pay, safety, retirement, discrimination and social justice.”
The council is currently meeting on the second Wednesday of each month, giving local union members the chance to discuss their goals for improving workplaces.
“When we have our meetings with our members, each union goes around and talks about what they’re working on and what’s been happening,” Woodland said. “We get an understanding of where somebody might need help. I myself have gone and picketed with workers so that we can show how everyone is affected and show support.”
As the labour council begins to get the gears turning for the first time in three decades, Woodland said it will be planning community engagement sessions to start.
Some of the planned events include an information seminar where people can be made familiar with the union process, family-friendly gatherings and the non-partisan, all-candidate election candidate Town Hall that they will be assisting The Times in hosting on Oct. 1.
As it continues working in the district, Woodland said the labour council will be encouraging younger members to learn and become involved.
“We feel there is a need to get young members,” she said. “A lot of young union members don’t even know what a labour council is; some don’t know who their union president is, and that’s only because they haven’t had any issues so far.”
“I asked a few who they would go to if they had a problem at work and they didn’t know. So, we’d like to be here to offer some guidance.”
Anyone looking to learn more about the council, get in contact about an issue or get involved can visit the group’s Facebook page or send an email to ffanddistrictlabourcouncil@gmail.com.
