Sisters and Brothers,
As a local union, we are in no different position than most of society right now. People want answers and the leadership of Unifor Local 707 has been doing our best to keep our members abreast as to the constant changing environment that we are faced with today. There are constant questions regarding what is going on with Covid-19 both in and out of the plant.
As a local, we are trying to ensure all issues are dealt with. EI, S&A, WSIB, EDB, Benefits, Shop floor concerns and much more. We have been involved at different levels with social justice issues such as Pink Shirt Day, Orange Shirt day, Human Rights Day and again… much more.
Our website has seen quite a few changes this past year. We launched our new site in July and have seen over a half million hits on it in just under 6 months which is incredible.
Keeping members informed has been well received by many members. We realize that people won’t always be happy with the message but believe us when we tell you that we are aiming to inform as quickly as issues arise. This was very important to us especially during our recent set of contract negotiations. We aim to continue that moving forward.
Messaging from The Local Union President, Mark Sciberras has been of high importance and members have expressed gratitude for keeping them informed. Plant Chair Bob Scott, Skilled Trades Chair Darrin Caerels and Ford Council Vice Chair Marc Brennan have all been contributing updates over the time of this worldwide pandemic.
In late December we launched our email service for our members. It is imperative that we get as many members to sign up as possible moving forward. With the portal and phone app that we have set up to get messaging to you quicker and privately without the rest of the World Wide Web seeing it directly, we ask our members to sign up today to be part of the growing number of members who want to participate.
We are hoping to put out video messaging from The President’s office and it will only be done through the portal. Not to limit who can see the message or only involve one certain group of members but all of our members who sign up will get to be part of the next generation of participation. Union mail is being hosted by Union1 who is the company we are now using to host our webpage. Did I mention that the first 1000 members to sign up will receive a free union long sleeve Tshirt? There will be a message sent out to those 1000 members asking for your shirt size shortly.
Any questions or concerns, feel free to email me directly at vp1@uniforlocal707.ca and I will either answer or send you in the right direction to get the proper answer. You are the Union. Do not be scared to address the leadership that you democratically elected to represent you.
Our elected leadership is working hard during this pandemic to ensure our members are well represented both at the shop floor level and through the union hall. We hope you are all keeping well during this rough period of time.
For those who may have been having a tough time dealing with the pandemic and have been struggling with alcohol or substance abuse or having mental health concerns due to the pandemic, there is help out there and our EFAP Reps Trevor Mason and/or Jeff Watson are only a phone call away to help advise you who to talk to to get the help needed to finding a way to cope with whatever issue may be bothering you. They can be reached through the plant at extension 3277.
Benefits for active members are dealt with by Paul Ivey and Tim Batke. They have been an invaluable resource to our active membership over the course of the pandemic and beyond. They can be reached through the plant at extension 3360. Please have patience when calling as they will more than likely not be able to answer your call when you call. This is indicated on the voicemail as the amount of calls is extremely high and it takes them up to 72 hours sometimes to get back to you. Their knowledge is unparalleled when it comes to our benefits. Sometimes I even tell people that the best way to get in touch with them is via email instead.
Stay safe, practice safe habits and hopefully we beat this pandemic soon.
In Solidarity,
Dave Millar
Vice President
Unifor Local 707
