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 Powering the Labour Movement since 1987 |
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A project of the Toronto & York Region Labour Council in partnership with George Brown College.
[COPE 343]
Why Labour Adjustment Training?
Corporate restructuring, globalization,
outsourcing, privatization and deregulation along with technological
change has changed the job market forever.
Union memberships have been decimated. "Good" unionized jobs are hard to find and the "new" jobs are often at much lower wages with few if any benefits. Much of the new work is "precarious" part-time, temporary or contract employment. If you still have a job, you're worried that you might be the next person in the unemployment line.
How do unions help their members cope with the economic, social and emotional cost of unemployment? It isn't easy!
However, since 1987, the Labour Education Centre has helped hundreds of union locals along with thousands of unemployed workers deal with the problems associated with job loss.
Through our Labour Adjustment Training programmes we help prepare local union representatives to negotiate labour adjustment agreements with employers.
Labour Adjustment Agreements not only include such things as severance pay and pensions, but also the provision of training funds and other types of re-employment assistance for those who are about to lose their jobs. However, negotiating a good labour adjustment agreement is tough when you have very little bargaining leverage with the employer. We help you deal with this situation.
Our programmes also help local unions in their dealings with government. Union activists can learn the "language" of adjustment services in order to obtain the best possible access to government funds and resources for their members.
LEC trains and provides ongoing support to union adjustment coordinators and counsellors so that they can organize assistance programme for their laid-off membership.
The guiding principle of our labour adjustment training is union solidarity. Being unemployed isn't a "personal" problem. Its a collective problem that needs a collective response. Workers shouldn't "have" to adjust to the economy, the economy should be adjusted to fulfill the needs of working people.
Next >> Training for Adjustment Committee Representatives • Union Adjustment Committee Member Training