Category: Media

• 2024 Comms Award winners

  From powerful posters to social posts that sing, more than a dozen OPSEU/SEFPO locals and groups were recognized for communications excellence during an awards ceremony at Editor’s Weekend 2024. Congratulations to all the OPSEU/SEFPO members dedicating their time and energy to keeping their locals and teams informed, inspired, and solid! Local 101 Local 101 Frontlines…

  November 1, 2024

  Media

• Editors Weekend 2024: A Weekend of Learning, Creativity, and Union Communication

  By Lorinda Seward, Local 351 When the dust settled on the 2024 Editors Weekend, held from October 18-20, 2024, at the Sheraton Toronto Airport and Conference Centre, participants were buzzing with fresh ideas, new skills, and a renewed sense of purpose. Hosted by the inSolidarity committee, this biennial gathering brought OPSEU/SEFPO members together to sharpen our…

  October 31, 2024

  Events, Media

  Elections

• Do more with less? Ford Government’s mini-budget continues pattern of neglect for community and social services

  Toronto – The Ford Government’s fall economic statement, released this afternoon, fails once again to meet the moment and real needs of Ontarians. Despite the Finance Minister’s assertion that the current economic outlook puts the province in a “position to do more”, their policies will actually mean funding in some key sectors will flatline or…

  October 30, 2024

  Media

  Media release

• Tips for engaging and powerful article writing

  Writing a catchy headline and subhead Make your headline descriptive – tell the main point of the story in the headline. Headlines can be up to 15 words ideally, but are sometimes even 20 words long. Subheads should support but not repeat what is in the headline. Writing an engaging lede The lede is the…

  October 28, 2024

  Events, Media

  Member Education

• Riding a record turnout, College Faculty deliver historic strike mandate with overwhelming “yes” vote

  TORONTO, ON –  Faculty across Ontario’s 24 public colleges, represented by OPSEU/SEFPO, have delivered a historic strike mandate to their bargaining team, sending a strong message that workers will not tolerate the employer’s serious concessions taking precedence over a fair contract which invests in quality education. On Friday, October 18th, college faculty concluded a province-wide…

  Andy Pedersen

  October 18, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release, Strike

• “This is why we are retiring in poverty:” Health care workers slam SickKids for choosing not to pay into pension plan for 26th year

  Health-care workers at SickKids Hospital in Toronto are outraged by their employer’s recent announcement that it will continue its “pension holiday” rather than improve retirement benefits for its staff. Last week, SickKids announced that it will not be paying into the staff pension plan for yet another year – it has only contributed to the…

  October 17, 2024

  Media, Pensions and Benefits

  HOOPP, Media release, Pensions

• Ford government’s audit of child protection system another smokescreen to evade responsibility for mounting crisis in child protection sector

  This is a joint release with CUPE Ontario. TORONTO – Thousands of young people in Ontario have been warehoused in hotels, motels, office buildings and worse because of an acute crisis of care the provincial government has manufactured. Four years into a “redesign” of the province’s children’s aid system, with no progress to show for…

  Andy Pedersen

  October 8, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release

• Over 15,000 Ontario college faculty to take strike mandate vote October 15-17: “We’re prioritizing quality education in the fight for student and faculty futures.”

  TORONTO – Without a renewal agreement in hand on the first day of contract expiry, over 15,000 college faculty – including full-time and partial-load professors and instructors, counsellors, and librarians – will hold a strike mandate vote between October 15th and 17th, authorizing labour action should a fair agreement fail to be reached. The OPSEU/SEFPO…

  Andy Pedersen

  October 1, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release, Strike

• Workers at CMHA Thames Valley rally to protect lifesaving mental health and addictions services

  As the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Thames Valley held their annual “year in review” community meeting today, the members of OPSEU/SEFPO Local 133, who work at the agency, rallied outside with community members to advocate for the funding needed to stop eliminating positions, protect lifesaving services and provide affordable housing. This past year, CMHA…

  September 25, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release

• Community stands with health care workers in fight for fair pay and worker wellbeing at Anishnawbe Health Toronto

  Andy Pedersen

  September 25, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release

• LifeLabs workers in GTA and Kitchener poised to strike if deal not reached by Saturday

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TORONTO – Thousands of Ontarians across the province rely on LifeLabs facilities for timely and dependable health care results – brokered through the labour of dependable workers. Now, those very workers across the Greater Toronto Area and Kitchener may walk off the job as soon as Saturday over the lack of dependable…

  Andy Pedersen

  September 11, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release, Strike

• Stop blaming front line correctional staff who work under impossible conditions: OPSEU/SEFPO statement on ICIT deployment at Maplehurst Correctional Complex

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 23, 2024 TORONTO – OPSEU/SEFPO leaders are speaking out in order to provide much-needed context in response to media reports about an Institutional Crisis Intervention Team (ICIT) deployment at Maplehurst Correctional Complex following an unprovoked, severe assault on a correctional officer in December 2023. The assault on the correctional officer took…

  Andy Pedersen

  August 23, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Crisis in Corrections, Media release

• Ford government deadly closure of safe consumption sites spells disaster for Ontario’s overdose epidemic: “Safe supply saves lives – this decision will result in countless unnecessary deaths.”

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Toronto, ON – In a stunning display of contempt for real community safety, the Ford government announced yesterday the closure of ten safe consumption sites (SCS) across Ontario that provide life-saving services, including overdose prevention, in Guelph, Kitchener, Hamilton, Thunder Bay, and Toronto. Even as frontline workers at these community pillars fight to glean more information from the…

  Andy Pedersen

  August 21, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release

• Joint Statement: Workers Ask the Premier to Base Public Policy on Evidence and Continue Saving Lives

  August 20, 2024 The following is a joint statement from SEIU Healthcare, CUPE Local 79, CUPE Ontario, OPSEU/SEFPO, ONA, and UFCW Locals 175 & 633. Every Ontarian deserves low-barrier access to mental health and addictions services in their community. These services must include life-saving harm reduction spaces that are well-funded and professionally administered and allow…

  Andy Pedersen

  August 21, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release

• Contract Faculty Forward: Seven Years Later, OLRB Decision Paves Way for Part-Time and Sessional Faculty Union Certification

  Toronto, ON – After seven long years, following part-time and sessional faculty across all 24 Ontario colleges voting to join OPSEU/SEFPO in October of 2017, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) issued a decision on July 30th to re-open ballot boxes. OPSEU/SEFPO warmly welcomes this decision, which paves the way towards the long-deserved recognition of…

  Andy Pedersen

  August 2, 2024

  Campaigns, Media

  Certifications, Media release

• Children’s Aid Society of Ottawa workers ratify new contract, vow to continue the fight against ongoing cuts

  Ottawa, ON – After more than three weeks on strike, Children’s Aid Society of Ottawa (CASO) workers ratified a new agreement with the agency yesterday – but workers say that the fight is far from over. “The decision to go out was not one we made easily, but workers were faced with an impossible choice,”…

  Andy Pedersen

  July 31, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release, Strike

• LCBO workers vote to ratify new contract after two-week strike

  Toronto / July 21, 2024 – Following an intense round of bargaining and an incredibly strong two-week strike, LCBO workers have voted to ratify a new three-year Collective Agreement that includes the protection of good jobs and public revenues. “We went on strike to protect good jobs and public revenues, and to win more permanent…

  July 21, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release

• LCBO Workers reach tentative settlement that protects jobs and public revenues

  Toronto / Saturday, July 20, 2024 – LCBO workers were forced to go on strike to protect public revenues and fight against the Premier’s expensive alcohol everywhere plan. We have now reached a tentative settlement that is a win for workers and Ontarians. The details were communicated to the OPSEU/SEFPO members Friday evening, and a…

  July 20, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release, Strike

• Layoffs at Kawartha-Haliburton CAS will impact community

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Peterborough, ON – On Thursday July 4, workers at the Kawartha-Haliburton Children’s Aid Society – members of OPSEU/SEFPO Local 334 – were advised of significant cuts being made to staff, with a deficit management plan being implemented for the next three years. The layoffs will impact 21 full-time staff members in critical…

  Andy Pedersen

  July 18, 2024

  Campaigns, Media

  Job cuts, Media release

• LCBO workers return to bargaining focused on protecting good jobs and public revenues

  Toronto – On the 13th day of their historic, first-ever strike, LCBO workers will return to the bargaining table today with their key demands top of mind: protecting thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions in public revenues generated by the LCBO annually. On July 4th, the employer handed the bargaining team an insulting offer…

  July 17, 2024

  Bargaining, Campaigns, Media

  Media release, Strike