Together, we can do it

In October, TCU Place in Saskatoon played host to the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour’s 56th annual convention. This year’s convention was another overwhelming success with 500 to 600 delegates in attendance. Convention delegates were treated to a number of presentations by a variety of accomplished speakers, some of whom you can read about inside the new edition of the Labour Reporter.

The theme of this year’s convention was “We Can Do It,” the iconic motto of Rosie the Riveter. Rosie’s famous words were a fitting theme for working people as we headed into a provincial election.

We have now seen the re-election of a government responsible for legislation that has significantly limited the rights of working people. It will be increasingly important to keep in mind that “we can do it.”

With a government in power that has passed legislation to strip working people of their Charter rights, political commentators that make no effort to hide an agenda against working people, and provincial and federal governments that care more about corporate tax cuts than protecting the pensions of people across the nation, it is more important than ever that we maintain our commitment to defending the rights of working people.

It is because of the diligent efforts of generations of working people that we enjoy the quality of life that we do in Saskatchewan today.

It is because of dedicated and compassionate people like you that we have pensions and comparatively good labour standards. It is because of people like you that we have Medicare and public services and Crown corporations that are still the envy of the continent, in spite of the current government’s recent attempts to undermine them. It is because of people like you that we had workplace safety standards enshrined in legislation in the first place and that we still have a Trade Union Act, even though our government has attempted to water it down and undercut our rights.

The truth is that people across this province should be extremely thankful for the hard work and dedication that working people show every day.

No amount of opposition from any government, political commentator, or interest group is going to stop us from conducting our most important work: defending the rights of working people.

In solidarity,
Larry Hubich, SFL President

Download full issue of SFL Labour Reporter here in pdf.