December 21, 2022

Holiday Greeting And Membership Update 2022

As 2022 comes to an end, we will take the time to reflect on the year gone by and look to the future with hope to the opportunities that are ahead of us. Welcome to those Members who are new to the Canadian Union of Skilled Workers, thank you for choosing to join and participate in the building of our union.

In January we will celebrate our 24^th anniversary. It does not seem that long ago, our members decided we needed a new type of union to represent workers and their families in Canada. We needed a union that embraced the principles of honesty, integrity, fairness, and equality. We needed a union that was inclusive, open to new members and new ideas. We needed a union where the needs of family are considered equally with the needs of the workplace. We have much to be thankful for, we have much more to do.

This past year has continued to provide good work opportunities with our growing number of employer partners. Worker representation has been a focus of our capacity building initiatives funded through your contributions to the Education and Training Trust Fund. A special thanks go out to our union stewards and health & safety representatives. A collaborative relationship between our workplace leadership, union supervisors, union Stewards, and Health & Safety Representatives make a huge difference in the culture of our workplaces.

The capacity building initiatives internal to our union has also made important strides in meeting our objects found in article 2 of the constitution. The National Committee Workshop in Blue Mountain followed by quarterly Committee Days have broadened member participation in the day-to-day activities. We look forward to the recommendations of the unit capacity building steering committee to round out our capacity building initiatives. Again, a special thanks to all members who participate within their units and on our national committees.

Next year, is an election year, we will nominate and select the members who agree to take on Leadership roles on behalf of all our members, starting with Workplace Elections in January, National Executive Board Elections in April, Unit Elections and National Committee Nominations in July and finally Convention Delegate nominations in October. Please take the time to encourage and nominate a member you believe will represent and participate on all our behalf.

January 16, 2024 is our 25^th Anniversary, we have much to celebrate.

Please take time to recognize the many traditions our members celebrate at this time of year. Please also take the time to reach out to a member you haven’t spoken to in a while and reconnect, especially those who are off work because of injury or illness. May the year end for you and your family with peace and joy. Happy New Year.

National Executive Board