The 2023 Triennial Convention began today and the President, 1st Vice-President, the 2nd Vice-President, the Regional Vice-Presidents, and the Life and Honorary Members were piped in. Indigenous Elder, Linda St. Cyr-Saric, a proud Red River Métis woman and citizen of the Manitoba Métis Federation did the land acknowledgement and said a prayer.
The Credentials Committee composed of Gary Esslinger and Eddy Aristil made their first report. There were 188 delegates, 10 guests, 87 observers and 15 staff members.
Prior to the adoption of the Convention Rules of Order, there were a few motions to change 19 b) which determines the number of delegates required to request a secret ballot, to a larger number. After some discussion, the motions were defeated, and the Rules of Order were adopted.
Attendees were greeted by the President of the Manitoba Federation of Labour, Kevin Rebeck. Brother Rebeck has been active in the labour movement for over 30 years and was re-elected president for a fifth term in 2022. With Brother Rebeck as president, the Manitoba Federation of Labour has successfully advocated for several progressive changes to Manitoba’s laws and policies. The Manitoba Federation of Labour pushed for domestic violence legislation that later spread across Canada, except for Nunavut. He spoke about having a strong united labour movement, a living wage, strong health and safety legislation, strong public services, and adequate staffing.
A moment of silence was observed to commemorate the members who had passed away since the last convention. Their names were displayed during this period.
There were no late resolutions and the regular per diem was adopted for convention.
After lunch, the Credentials Committee reported 188 delegates, 10 guests, 11 Life and Honorary Members, 87 observers and 15 staff.
The National President, Marc Brière welcomed the attendees to convention. He spoke of the challenges and achievements of the last two years. Brother Brière thanked the delegates and observers for their work and dedication.
The Host Committee was introduced by Gary Esslinger, Regional Vice-President of the Prairie Region. Tracy Theriault, chair of the committee, welcomed the attendees and gave some information about things to do in Winnipeg. She invited attendees to visit the Host Committee room.
The Nominations and Elections Committee composed of Jean Bergeron, Jean-Pierre Fraser and Madonna Gardiner outlined the procedures for the nominations and the elections.
The reports of the National President, the First Vice-President and the Second Vice-President were accepted.
The Finance Resolutions Committee was called up. Doug Gaetz, First Vice-President, and chair of the committee went through the various items that make up the budget. Brother Gaetz mentioned that between the time the committee originally met and now, we spent quite a lot to top up strike pay for our members during the strike. Our surplus is now below one year’s operating budget, but he was confident that we would be in a better financial position by the next cycle. The budget passed unanimously. The committee’s first recommendation, a line item for promotional items to increase visibility at the PSAC National Convention was carried. The second recommendation, that carries over the unused amounts allocated for non-UTE events and National and Regional Conferences from year to year until 2026, was also carried. The third recommendation setting the per diem was passed earlier.