Tag: OPSEU in the News
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OPSEU, autism service provider slam Ford
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas is quoted in a Guelph Today article about a local autism service provider that says it might have to raise the fees it charges parents due to the changes the Ford government is making to autism funding. The website reports that Thomas “said autism services are clearly in need of investment,…
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Thomas: Ford’s dead wrong on affordability
The Toronto Sun published the following op-ed written by OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas on February 4, 2019. For most Ontarians, life is getting harder and much less affordable. Nearly 50% of Canadians are $200 or less away from financial insolvency, and after 25 years of austerity and deep cuts in Ontario, we’ve reached a full-out affordability…
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Thomas speaks out: Should the LCBO crack down on shoplifting? Yes
The Toronto Star published the following op-ed, written by OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas, on January 15, 2019. It is reprinted here in full. Imagine seeing thieves wandering around your workplace, grabbing things off the shelves and getting away with it. Imagine the frustration of knowing that in many cases you can’t stop the thief,…
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Union reveals location of secret cannabis warehouse, claims province blocked sign up drive
The head of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union says the provincial government is trying to prevent workers from unionizing at the Ontario Cannabis Store warehouse. The union also claims to have discovered the location of the warehouse, which had been kept secret by the OCS due to security concerns. Click here to read the full…
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GM stocks rise as Ontario unions rally against the automaker
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas took the stage at a Friday rally in Windsor to support General Motors workers in the face of a planned Oshawa plant closure. The rally was timed to coincide with GMs capital markets day across the river in Detroit, during which the company bragged about profits. 2500 autoworkers could lose…
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Free speech policies now in effect at Ontario’s colleges and universities
Colleges Ontario has come under fire from the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, which said more input was needed and claimed no faculty members were included. “This so-called free-speech policy is anything but. In fact, a better name would be ‘gag-order policy,’” OPSEU president Warren “Smokey” Thomas said in a release. Click here to read…
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As extended hours at LCBO continue beyond holidays, union calls for more safety measures
The recent spike in thefts at various LCBO locations has Warren ‘Smokey’ Thomas — president of OPSEU — calling for the government to meet and implement further security measures at store locations. “The LCBO is making some progress, but in my mind, not enough,” Thomas said. Click here to read the full article on the…
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President Thomas takes to the radio waves to talk cannabis and alcohol
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas appeared on CP24’s Live at Noon on January 3 to discuss recent police reports that there are increasing numbers of impaired drivers on Ontario’s roads. Thomas said that making alcohol even more accessible – through expanded sales in grocery stores and possibly even grocery stores – would just drive impaired-driving…
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LCBO thefts surge in Toronto, often as staff stand and watch. ‘They’re literally just walking away’
The sobering numbers look like this: more than 9,000 thefts at LCBO outlets in Toronto in the past four-and-a-half years (Jan. 1, 2014 to June 26, 2018), according to a crunching of Toronto Police Service data obtained by the Star. That makes the Liquor Control Board of Ontario far and away the most targeted retail…
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Sault OPSEU leaders holding Romano accountable
Sault Online is reporting that OPSEU members helped bolster the ranks of a rally in Sault Ste Marie on Dec. 20 in hopes of giving Conservative MPP Ross Romano “the gift of knowledge.” “Many constituents, I believe, do not agree with the provincial government, the Ford government’s decisions to date,” OPSEU Region 6 RVP Tara…
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‘There was absolutely zero faculty input’ on college speech policy
The Globe and Mail is reporting OPSEU’s serious concerns about the restrictive speech policy hastily adopted by Ontario’s community colleges. “There was absolutely zero faculty input,” said OPSEU college faculty division chair RM Kennedy in The Globe article. The Globe highlights OPSEU’s concern that the policy gives colleges the power to “regulate the time, place…
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Coverage of OPSEU LCBO members’ Keep it Public events
Newspapers and TV and radio stations across the province are covering the “Keep It Public” information pickets being held by OPSEU members working at the LCBO. “The whole notion of this is to try to keep the LCBO public,” OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas is quoted as saying by the Toronto television station CP24. “We…
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Thomas talks union solidarity with Global’s John Oakley
Following three radio interviews earlier yesterday, President Thomas was interviewed a fourth time in late afternoon by popular Global News radio host John Oakley. Thomas continued to speak about the alliance he has struck with Unifor National President Jerry Dias to keep the GM plant in Oshawa open and to protect and improve public services…
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Thomas and Dias: ‘We prefer to talk – but ready to fight’
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas and Unifor National President Jerry Dias appeared Monday on 570 News, Zoomer Radio and Global AM980 on their recent announcement to join forces to block Doug Ford’s “destructive” agenda. The union leaders touched on a number of issues but focused on the Premier’s shocking surrender in the face of GM’s…