New merged CAW-CEP union to be called Unifor

After five months of researching and testing, the leadership of the CAW and CEP have come up with a new name representing the union's goal of becoming THE union for Canada -- Unifor!

The new name was announced at a press conference May 30.

The Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers began merger talks in 2011. The two unions are expected to formally merge after a joint convention over the Labour Day weekend this year and will march together for the first time at the Toronto Labour Day parade.

Local 87M, also known as the Southern Ontario Newspaper Guild (SONG) joined CEP in 1994 after leaving The Newspaper Guild, which was based in the U.S. and is now part of the Communications Workers of America.

Read more in the Toronto Star ... 

New union constitution highlights

Download a copy of the new union constitution highlights at http://www.newunionproject.ca/new-union-constitution-overview/

The Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union Local 87-M (Southern Ontario Newsmedia Guild) invites applicants for its $500 award recognizing journalism on the subject of work.

This is the sixth year for the award, which is intended to encourage discussion on issues such as working conditions, labour law, employee rights, etc. Because we are a union Local that serves both newspapers and broadcast, the journalism can be in any format, as long as it has been publically published or broadcast.  

“Journalists play a vital role in the lives of workers. They inform, expose, analyze, entertain and record history,” said Local 87-M President Paul Morse.  “Without them, the fabric of our democratic society falls apart.  As CEP’s largest media Local, we laud their contributions and recognize excellence with this award.”

A panel of independent judges will consider the importance of the media report to the lives of working people. The subject matter can go beyond Canada, but it should be of relevance to Canadians. The judges will consider the quality of the presentation, be it writing, audio or video; the ramifications, if any, of the work; the amount of attention the work received from the public; the difficulty experienced in gathering the information; and the resources available to the journalist.

Last year’s winner was Sean Irvine of the CTV News London for the special series on the closing of Ford’s St. Thomas Assembly Plant.

The award is handed out annually based on work done over the previous calendar year. Please email submissions to SONG President Paul Morse no later than May 31^st. Please include a cover letter with your contact information, explaining the importance of the journalism to the working lives of Canadians and addressing the other criteria to be used in judging the entries.

Paul Morse, 

President, CEP Local 87-M

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Ph: 416-461-2461, ext 1, 1-800-463-5797

Nine Sun Media units ratify central deal on wages, benefits and job security

Nine Sun Media workplaces have ratified an historic deal negotiated for the first time at a central table.

A tentative deal was reached Feb.14 and ratified at votes across Ontario over the last week of February and the first week of March.

The central deal covered wages, benefits and job security issues. This was the first time that such a broad, and significant, range of issues have been bargained centrally at the Quebecor-owned media giant.

As a result of the deal, the employer's proposal to cut vacations and bereavement leave at a majority of the newspapers was unsuccessful. Instead, bereavement leave was increased at some units and several units got an improvement in their severance language, a major job security issue.

An overwhelming majority of members at the nine newspapers approved the tentative central deal and no units voted againsst it. Bargaining will now proceed over the next two months on any remaining local issues.

The pattern is expected to remain in place for a second group of Sun Media newspapers bargaining in late 2013/early 2014.

The nine newspapers whose contracts were up for renewal in 2012 include the Sarnia Observer, the Chatham Daily News, the Simcoe Reformer, the Stratford Beacon-Herald, the Niagara Falls Review, the Brantford Expositor, the Belleville Intelligencer, the Pembroke Observer and the London Free Press Editorial unit.

New union name to be discussed at April/May meetings

Regional forums on new union issues will be held in April and May for local union leaders from both CEP and the CAW to receive feedback on preliminary recommendations from six working groups.

Those regional meetings will put special focus on reviewing initial proposals regarding: 

 the name, logo, and identity of the new union; 

 the new union’s constitution; and 

 initial recommendations regarding non-traditional membership structures and organizing strategies. 

Six specialized Working Groups have been established to talk through the details of forming a new union and will make final recommendations to both the CEP and CAW National Executive Boards in late May. 

As part of their deliberations, the Working Groups will consider feedback from the regional meetings as they fine-tune their recommendations regarding all aspects of the new union’s philosophy, structure, and operations. 

The new union’s founding convention will be held August 30 to September 1 in Toronto – just in time for members to march under their new banner in the 2013 Labour Day parades that will occur across Canada. 

The founding convention will approve the new union’s constitution and plan of action, and elect its first leaders.

The Working Groups are addressing the following areas: 

Constitution: Draft a formal constitution and other founding documents and policies. This working group will also take responsibility for ensuring the smooth maintenance of bargaining rights. 

Communications: Undertake research, consultation, and testing work associated with selecting a name and logo for the new union, and prepare an ambitious communications strategy for the new union’s launch. 

Organizing: Draft an ambitious organizing strategy, including a “wave” of organizing initiatives to be launched when the new union is formed. This group will also design and implement the Proposal Committee’s vision for new non-traditional forms of membership. 

Implementation: Develop an implementation and transition plan for consolidating the two unions (including the integration of offices, information systems, national departments, and other operational matters). 

Staff Relations: A leadership team from both unions will initiate discussions with the various staff unions at both the CAW and CEP to ensure a fair, secure transition for the unions’ employees (including non-represented employees). The two unions have already committed that no union employees will be laid-off as a result of the creation of the new union. 

Convention: Oversee organization and logistics associated with the founding convention of the new union. 

Most of the Working Groups held initial meetings before the Christmas holiday shut-down. Further meetings of each group took place in January, and more will occur regularly through the next several months.

See the New Union website for more informaiton ...

All major Canadian newspapers to have paywalls in 2013

Canadian Business Magazine says online readers will no longer get anything more than a sampling of free news content from any major Canadian newssite by the end of this year, a dramatic turn of events in the beleaguered newspaper industry and potentially good news for newspaper employees represented by CEP 87M, Ontario's media union.

Instead of free content, online readers will be greeted by a paywall that will encourage them to shell out small sums of money for subscriptions.

This evolution began in March 2011 when the New York Times erected a paywall. Today, subscriptions now bring in more revenue than advertising, which had fallen off dramatically in the last few years.

Other newspaper companies have fallen suit, including Canadian newspapers such as the Globe and Mail, Postmedia, Sun Media and, soon, the Toronto Star. 

Read more in Canadian Business Magazine ...