Labour education builds solidarity and knowledge. It teaches the skills unions need to represent their members and defend their rights using proven methods that allow adults of all backgrounds to learn. If your union wants to train the next generation of local activists or expand the skills that today’s leaders and activists already have, the CLC Winter School 2027 is here to help your union succeed.
The CLC Pacific Region Winter School is the largest labour school in Canada and we take pride in offering the very best in labour education.
Date
Sunday, February 7, 2027 to Friday, February 12, 2027
Location
Harrison Hot Springs, 100 Esplanade Ave., B.C. V0M 1K0
Fees
Single Accommodation: $2,385.00
We will not be offering Shared Accommodation for the 2027 Winter School.
To change or cancel a registration after December 16, 2026, you must contact the Pacific Region office at pacific@clcctc.ca
Cancellations received after January 1, 2027 will be subject to a $350.00 cancellation fee.
Registrants must have the approval of their union before registering.
Community Savings Credit Union Scholarship
Kim Manton Memorial Scholarship
One Movement Threads “Movement Builder” Scholarship
CUPE BC 2027 Young Workers Scholarship
Child Care:
Free child care is provided at Winter School for eligible delegates with children ages 12 months to 12 years. An eligible delegate is a single parent, a parent not accompanied by a spouse/companion, or where both parents are delegates. While the CLC will pay the actual childcare costs at the school, students will be responsible for any additional hotel charges for their child. Delegates having additional childcare costs as a result of leaving their children at home should apply for reimbursement from their own union.
There is a limited number of spots available in the childcare program. Spots will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Delegates requiring child care must pre-register and indicate child care on their registration form. Requests for child care do not constitute guaranteed spots in the childcare program. The deadline for childcare registrations is December 4, 2026. Requests received after this deadline will only be accommodated if there is room in the childcare program. Cancellations are required and must be received 14 days in advance of your attendance at Winter School. Failure to cancel booked childcare space(s) will result in a “no-show fee” of $300.00.
*Childcare arrangements may not be able to accommodate special needs, but please contact the Pacific Region office for more information.
Please be aware that should unforeseen circumstances arise due to staffing issues, there is the possibility that childcare coverage may be cancelled without advance notice. Participants wishing to utilize the childcare program should keep alternate arrangements in mind, just in case.
COVID Policies & Requirements:
We will be following all provincial health requirements at the 2027 Winter School. As provincial requirements do change on short notice, we encourage all affiliates to remain up-to-date. We will provide updates on our website regarding any changes to health requirements for the school. All participants should be prepared to comply in the event a mask and/or vaccine mandate is reintroduced in B.C. If changes to the COVID requirements make a participant unable to attend, the standard cancellation policy will apply. At this time, we are strongly encouraging all participants to be fully vaccinated, to help protect themselves and others.
Courses Offered:
Building Worker Power with Digital Campaigns
Have you been wondering how digital organizing can build power, engage members, and win for workers? Drawing on successful political, issue-based, and labour campaigns, this course offers a practical framework for planning and running effective digital campaigns in your union. Through collaborative learning and hands-on practice, you’ll learn the fundamentals of digital engagement and how to integrate digital organizing strategies, including:
- Understanding what digital organizing is and how it can help you mobilize members on the issues that matter.
- Learning storytelling, digital tactics, data management, and how to leverage email and social media.
- Building campaigns that connect online and offline strategies – and measuring the results.
- Exploring practical digital tools to support engagement and make your work more effective.
Who this course is for:
Union communicators, campaigners, organizers, strategists, and activists.
There is a scholarship available from One Movement Threads for this course. Interested applicants should contact One Movement Threads or download the scholarship information package and application form from our website: www.winterschool.ca/registration.
Collective Bargaining Level 1
Participants will leave with a solid understanding of the bargaining process and the factors that affect collective bargaining. This course also introduces some of the laws and rules that structure the bargaining process and provides opportunities for hands-on practice and skills development in preparing for and negotiating parts of a collective agreement. Level 1 is aimed at new bargaining committee members and local union officers. You may want to bring a calculator for this course.
Collective Bargaining Level 2
Bring a copy of your collective agreement and a calculator as we work with different strategies and tactics for effectively facing today’s challenges at the bargaining table. How do we deal with workplace change – restructuring, automation, or new technology? What language best protects workers against unfairness in drug and alcohol testing or electronic monitoring? How do we prepare our membership and the union to deal with concession demands in pension and health benefits? This is a course for students who have taken Collective Bargaining Level 1 and have some experience on a bargaining committee.
Facing Management Effectively
This course will look at economic, political, and social forces at play between union and management. It will examine the roles and rights of each group and the different types of union/management relationships and styles. We will look at the power, bias, and privilege dynamics between union and management and how we can communicate effectively. We will focus on problem solving – understanding issues, developing strategies, finding and presenting facts and argument, finding areas of agreement, building solutions, implementing and maintaining solutions. Participants can expect lots of participation, interaction, and role-plays along with practical skills and tools for communication, analysis, strategy, and critical thinking.
Mental Health First Aid Certification
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Certification provides the knowledge, skills, and attitudes for participants to recognize changes in mental health, respond supportively, and apply practical actions for declining mental health and crisis situations. It helps participants build confidence, reduce stigma, and enhance their own mental health.
Key Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, participants will have
- Increased awareness of mental health: key indicators of declining mental health, contributing factors, Two Continua Model of mental health
- Improved confidence: to approach people, provide appropriate help with relevant supports, identify barriers and communicating non-judgementally
- Increased knowledge of stigma: how this shows up and strategies to combat it
- Expanded self-awareness: self-assess mental health using the strategies of the Three Pillars of Self-Care: reflective, purposeful, and boundaries.
Learning Methods
Interactive delivery featuring presentations, scenario-based practice, personal reflection, and collaborative small group discussions.
Target Audience
Anyone who is interested in learning outcomes.
Note:
Participants who complete the class in full are candidates for the 3-year Certified Mental Health First Aid designation. An assessment must be completed to finish the process. This will be sent after the class by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (Opening Minds).
If you miss more than 10 mins of class, you will be ineligible for any certificates
As the Mental Health Commission of Canada charges a fee for this course, an additional $100 has been added to the registration cost.
There is a scholarship available from Community Savings Credit Union for this course. Interested applicants should contact Community Savings or download the scholarship information package and application form from our website: www.winterschool.ca/registration.
Parliamentary Procedure & Public Speaking
This is a two-part course. Parliamentary Procedure covers how to run a meeting effectively, the duties of a chairperson and secretary, and how the rules of order can provide a democratic and fair process to get the business of the union accomplished. Public Speaking covers how to speak persuasively to various groups and how different formats are used to speak at convention, debates, and impromptu gatherings.
There is a scholarship available for this course through the CLC Pacific Region office. Please see the Frank Wall Leadership Development Scholarship information on page 20 of the Winter School brochure for details or visit our website at: www.winterschool.ca/registration.
Steward Training Level 1
The steward is often the main point of contact between the union, its members, management, and the larger labour movement. This course builds the skills, confidence, and knowledge a steward needs to represent their members. Participants will learn the roles and responsibilities of their position as stewards, the handling of grievances and complaints, problem-solving skills, protecting contractual provisions in the collective agreement, and current issues for stewards.
Workers’ Compensation Level 1
This course provides a review of the Workers Compensation Act, how the Board functions, procedures for filing claims, WCB policies for adjudicating claims, and the appeals process. This is a basic course and will interest those union members just starting to handle WCB claims and appeals. This class will observe a hearing presentation to a panel of the Review Division.
Workers’ Compensation Level 2
This course is for union members wanting to improve their WCB advocacy skills. Participants will assist an injured worker in a mock appeal where their injury has been denied by the WCB. The class will review how to seek a doctor’s opinion in support of the injured worker, how to question the worker at an appeal hearing, and how to present argument regarding occupational injury and disability. Participants are encouraged to discuss the specific types of work-related injuries and benefits that their members are having denied or not dealt with properly, and emphasis will be placed on how to apply one’s advocacy skills to those types of cases. At the end of the week, the class will participate in a mock hearing of the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal.