Wednesday 13 February 2008

Sask. Party government continues it's assault on working people

The Sask. Party government has decided that there is no place on the Boards of Directors of Saskatchewan's Crown Corporations for a representative of the workers who are employed there.

According to this article in the Regina Leader-Post, the Sask. Party government will not appoint or re-appoint Board Members to the Crowns who are there on behalf of the unions representing the employees in those workplaces. That's a tad hypocritical, especially considering that they (the Sask. Party) have no problem ensuring a place for "labour" on the Board of their new "super board" known as "Enterprise Saskatchewan". In fact, the "Enterprise Saskatchewan" Board has a representative from labour on it written right into the legislation creating the entity.

The Crown Corporations in Saskatchewan belong to the citizens of this province. And that includes the people who work there. They do not belong to the Sask. Party caucus and their cronies.

Perhaps the real reason why they don't want any "labour" reps on the new boards of the Crowns is because they don't want anybody to know about their plans to "Privatize" them.

Premier Brad Wall continues to "reach out to labour".

17 comments:

David said...

Assault? hahaha.

Anonymous said...

I have to agree that this move from government is short sighted. Many, many private corporations see the value in having Union representation on their Boards. This practice provides an avenue for worker's voices to be heard which might not otherwise exist. It's too bad that the Sask Party, in its inexperience, chose to end this long accepted practice.

Francis Walsingham said...

This isn't an assault on working men and women; this is an assault on unions and their executives, in particular out-dated attitudes of organizations like the SFL...

This is a very good thing...

As for garry's comment, name one company, other than a Crown Corporation that has union representative on their BOD's...

Anonymous said...

Gee Francis, this is easy. Chrysler.
Give me ten minutes and I could find many, many more. It's not uncommon. Having union representation on a board provides an avenue for the board to get feedback they would be insulated from otherwise. I suggest that BODs that follow this practice find it valuable.
And Francis, an 'assault on unions' is just another way of saying an assault on working people.

Pepster said...

Francis

It's very simple

Knowledge is power........

And you don't want your people to have any power do you?

Francis Walsingham said...

garry, "an 'assault on unions' is just another way of saying an assault on working people."

No it's not... Grow up. Many of us out here work without the yoke of a union around our necks.

pepster, unions should stick to what they know... and they don't know how to run capitalist enterprises. Only how to suck the life out of them....

Anonymous said...

Grow up? My my my Francis aren't you mature. You asked for an example of a corporation that had Union representatives on the BOD, and I gave you one example, and there are obviously [surely even to you] many more.
Unions 'suck the life' out of capitalist enterprises??? Sorry Francis [if this is your real name, and if it is, I'd change it.], they contribute to them. The union members need the enterprise to flourish as obviously the derive their livelihood from the self same enterprise. Unions don't take away, they add.

Francis Walsingham said...

Unions do not contribute to capitalist enterprises. Period.

You've never run a business, so you don't know. All you've ever done is belong to a union, garry...

Anonymous said...

Sorry Francis, you are fresh out of credibility. [But you must be used to this] Go and have another swig of the cheap rye you are halfway into. Might as well drink it all now, you don't want to be late for work at the Sask Party on Monday. [I say Monday, because surely you don't recognize NDP stat holidays like Family Day]

Francis Walsingham said...

Dear Garry Hamblin, President of COPE, Local 397,

You comments have been duly noted

can't_believe_it said...

Unions have no place in management. You can screw up companies bad enough from the sidelines, no one needs you influenceing decisions that actually count. Get over it, you are now in the back of the bus...ain't gonna change for a while. Now that there are secret ballots for decertification, there'll be a lot less of you to fight for the NDP next election. I'm awaiting the opening of Superstore's first Liquor Store....

MooseJawGuy said...

The SFL's silence over the lockout of the CEP by the SGEU is truly a looking glass into the working of union leadership or lack thereof. Larry where are your comments of the SGEU locking out unionized workers, and Bob Bymeon crossing picket lines every morning to go to his office? You have tried to distance yourself from this issue even with the request of the CEP to remove the SGEU from your membership by diverting attention to the government's pending legislation. What is your stance? You seem to enjoy baiting the government, and you throw yourself into the public forum...I await your answer.

Larry Hubich said...

Dear MooseJawGuy,

Thank you for participating in this blog. Sorry for the delay in responding, but I have been out of the country for the past week, on a personal matter.

We (the SFL) have been working diligently with the parties to the dispute between SGEU and CEP. And we are doing so, in accordance with the Constitution and Convention endorsed Policies of the SFL.

The SFL is an organizaton comprised of 37 different provincial, national and international unions from over 700 different locals. Issues of dispute between affiliates are complex, delicate, and challenging.

I have commented on this situation publicly and in the media - when deemed necessary and appropriate.

Francis Walsingham said...

In other words, Larry was on vacation in, where else? Cuba...

That's where all the good union leaders eventually end up on break.

Larry Hubich said...

Correct! I was meeting with Fidel.

huffb1 said...

Your kidding right?

Larry Hubich said...

Well now huffb1, what do you think? Who do you think convinced him to retire?

And to address an earlier point attempted by 'francis' who wrote:

"Unions do not contribute to capitalist enterprises. Period."

Check out this link to the Quebec Federation of Labour Solidarity Fund. You will see that the QFL has invested over $7.4 BILLION in some 1680 small and medium enterprises in that province.