Sisters and Brothers,
First of all, I would like to say thank you so much to the membership for their support in re-electing me as the Education Chairperson for the local. Your support means the world to me, and I will do everything in my ability to continue to bring as many educational opportunities as possible to this local. Congratulations goes out as well to all others elected to their respected positions, and best of luck to all of those who will be competing in the run-off elections.
With the rapidly changing conditions regarding the devastating COVID-19 outbreak, there have been several major changes to the education department.
Port Elgin Learning and Area Schools
Unifor National has made the tough decision of cancelling all scheduled Port Elgin Learning and Area school courses until September 2020. For those of you who were enrolled in one of these courses, you should have received some sort of personal contact regarding the cancellation of your course.
We were originally hoping to run an Area school on Bullying in the Workplace this coming May. Due to the National’s decision, we will most likely be pushing back this course until the late fall. Keep an eye out on the Local 707 webpage for the updated course date as it becomes available. The class will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. Once this new date is announced please reach out to me ASAP at bnwt94@gmail.com, or by text at 226-802-1914.
McMaster Labour Studies Program
Similar to PEL and Area Schools, all remaining scheduled McMaster labour studies courses have been postponed until further notice. This includes both in-class sessions, as well as video conference courses. The hope is that we are able to run the remainder of these courses online through a web conference platform such as zoom. We do not yet have confirmation from McMaster on when these courses will resume, however once I have word from the school I will be posting the new course dates and delivery method on the local website.
We do offer a fully online course on Unions in Politics that can be taken from your own home at your own pace. If you are interested in taking this course, please e-mail me and I will put you in contact with the school’s director of the Labour Studies program. From there we can send you any necessary course materials you will need.
If you have any questions at all about the education department that I have not answered in this report, please feel to reach out to me and I will answer any questions you may have.
Hope you are all staying safe and healthy in these troubling times.
In solidarity,
Bryce Thompson
Education Chairperson
