Dear Brothers and Sisters of CULE II,
I would like to acknowledge my thanks to both Patrick Bragg and Colleen MacKay for agreeing to sign my nomination papers. I respectfully request the opportunity to represent your issues and concerns on the CULE Executive in the capacity of CULE II Member at Large (MAL). I have included a statement below to let you know a bit about my union activism and more importantly, where I stand with regard to some of the issues at hand.
I would like to thank the Bargaining Team for their tremendous efforts during this difficult round of negotiations. It is no secret that negotiations for a number of labour employee unions across the country have taken a nasty turn, becoming protracted and in some instances resulted in labour employees being locked out by the very unions that they work so hard for. We are now seeing unions treat their employees in a manner that they would never accept for their own membership. It is a development that we must be wary of both as union members and as labour employees.
My own history as a union member and activist began in the late 1980’s when I joined the Manitoba Government Employees Union (MGEU). My union education began with understanding the importance of the collective and that each member was an equal part of that collective. My journey eventually led to becoming a member of the PSAC in January 2000. In October 2001, I accepted a term position as the Executive Assistant to the REVP Prairies, a position that was excluded from the union. In May 2003 I became the Administrative Assistant in the Winnipeg RO and a proud member of CULE.
The training that I received from MGEU has taught me that whether or not you are on the executive you still have responsibilites to your fellow members. I have heeded that advice to this day and have made a habit of checking in with the other offices especially during events such as our elections and I have encouraged others in the organization to do the same. If elected as the CULE II MAL, you can still expect to hear from me, just more frequently. After all, how can I speak for you if I don’t know what to say?
CULE II needs a strong voice on the executive. Let it be a voice that represents us with the recogntion that we are all equal. I will continue to seek out your voices and represent you effectively. I am eager to become more involved in our union.
I welcome your questions and comments at shelleyjamieson@yahoo.ca. Thank you for your consideration.
In Solidarity,
Shelley Jamieson