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Last Updated December 23
View of some of the food and other goods donated to the locked out Tembec workers

Seen above are some of the food, toys and other items donated to the locked out Tembec workers

A Helping Hand At Christmas

Dozens of trade unionists from a variety of unions travelled to Pine Falls in south-eastern Manitoba in the week before Christmas to support more than 260 Steelworkers and about 20 members of COPE who have been locked out by their employer, Tembec Paper Mill, since the beginning of September. Efforts to reach a settlement in the stand-off died with the recent company announcement that it intends to sell the plant.

MFL President Kevin Rebeck on the picket line during the barbecue
MFL President Kevin Rebeck was among those who came to give the Tembec workers moral and financial support.
 

It's not the first time the paper mill workers have faced the prospect of their workplace being sold. More than a decade ago, then-owner Abitibi Paper, put the mill up for sale. Employees and some community members purchased the plant to keep it operating before selling it to Tembec. It's the first labour-dispute based work stoppage at the plant since it opened in 1926.

Supporters brought with them cash donations, food and toys for the children of the locked out workers. The Manitoba Federation of Labour gave the workers $16,700 worth of $100 gift certificates to be spent with the town's businesses to help replace lost purchasing power. The money to purchase the gift certificates had been contributed by MFL affiliates (see below for a complete list of the unions that contributed through the MFL).

Peter Olfert and Lois Wales on picket line
MGEU President Peter Olfert (right) and Lois Wales, MGEU Vice-President and MFL Executive Vice-President, presented the locked out workers with $1300 raised through MGEU's bake sale.
 

United Steelworkers (USW) Local 7106 Flin Flon held a fund raising social for the Pine Falls union members and Steelworkers on strike in Sudbury Ontario. Both groups each received $7,500, with the money going to Pine Falls ear-marked for the children of locked out Tembec workers. United Steelworkers Local 6166 in Thompson donated $2,500 to the Tembec workers.

The Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 1505, donated $1,355 to the workers, $1 for each member of the local union. The Manitoba Government Employees Union presented the workers with $1,300, proceeds from the Annual MGEU Bake Sale. Other organizations that contributed to helping the workers included Edward Schreyer School in Beausejour, Isaac Newton High School in Winnipeg, and Arby's Restaurants.

Manitobans generally have adopted the locked-out workers as their own, with students from several Winnipeg and rural high schools putting together cash, food, and toy packages for the workers and their families. Students and staff in the University of Manitoba's Labour Studies Program have conducted similar efforts.

Messages of solidarity were shared with the workers from the unions represented at a hot dog barbeque put on by the Winnipeg Labour Council. MFL President Kevin Rebeck promised the locked out workers continued support as the drama continues to unfold to ensure that the end result is a fair one for the workers.

Other unions/labour organizations that contributed to help the Tembec workers:

  • Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) Manitoba
  • Association of Commercial and Technical Employees (ACTE) Local 1725
  • Brandon and District Labour Council
  • Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) Local 101-6
  • Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) Local 3005
  • Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) Local 4209
  • Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) Local 3003
  • Canadian Labour Congress (CLC)
  • Canadian Office and Professional Employees (COPE) Local 342
  • Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Local 824 Saskatoon, SK
  • Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Local 854 Winnipeg
  • Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Local 770 Lethbridge, AB
  • Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Prairie Region
  • Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) Resource Centre
  • Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 1063
  • Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 500
  • Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 998
  • Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 4593
  • Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Manitoba
  • Canadian Labour Congress Kids Camp
  • Communications Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) Local 819M
  • Communications Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) Local 821M
  • Communications Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) Local 830
  • Communications Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) Manitoba Office
  • Focus on Labour - publication published by the CLC
  • International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local 1953
  • International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 2034
  • International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 435
  • John Doyle, member of USW Local 9074
  • Manitoba Federation of Union Retirees (MFUR)
  • Manitoba Union Label League (MULL)
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Local 50031
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Local 50704
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Regional Executive VP
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Winnipeg Area Council
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada Local (PSAC) 50021
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada Winnipeg (PSAC) Office
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada/GWU (PSAC) Local 50057
  • Public Service Alliance of Canada/PFRA (PSAC) Local 50234
  • Telecommunications Employees Association of Manitoba (TEAM)
  • Telecommunications Employees Association of Manitoba/International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (TEAM/IFPTE)
  • United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 832
  • United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 832 (UFCW) Retirees
  • United Steelworkers (USW) Local 1-830
  • University of Manitoba Faculty Association (UMFA)
  • Winnipeg Labour Council (WLC)