Pacific Region Winter School – course descriptions
Week 1 – January 14 – 19, 2018
BCGEU 2018 Leadership Lab
This year’s Leadership Lab will be a hands-on experiment involving elected officers at our local and component levels. We will be building the next gen training program for future union leaders, based on real experiences and needs. We will explore the qualities of successful leaders while developing a learning pathway that supports and nurtures effective and responsive leadership. And, with a new political landscape in B.C., we will also look at ways to build a common and collective understanding of the political, economic and social forces we face using a power analysis model, critical thinking and other tools, and drawing on our own experiences.
This is a working session geared toward curriculum and program development. Participants should be a current BCGEU local officer or component executive member and be prepared to actively engage in the Leadership Lab, including completing a pre-school survey. Expressions of interest should be submitted directly to learning@bcgeu.ca no later than October 20 for consideration by senior BCGEU leaders.
Building Psychologically Healthy Workplaces
Current research confirms that mental health issues are prevalent in B.C. workplaces. Workers who experience mental health issues face incredible challenges in the workplace. Many are misunderstood, stigmatized, and underutilized. From an organizational effectiveness and sustainability perspective, this is a significant business issue and one that requires attention. In a world where shortages of critical skills are, and will continue to be, a priority for many organizations, we cannot afford to allow the situation to continue.
Workplace stress, bullying, harassment, and violence are increasingly the predominant issue for Canadians. Awareness of the staggering economic cost of workplace stress and related issues ($51 billion annually) grows steadily. Research also points to stress as a contributing factor in actual workplace accidents, injuries, and violence, making it a major factor in OH&S.
This course looks at all of the various workplace psychosocial factors and works on developing and implementing as effective plan that will improve the psychological health and safety of a workplace. The course examines strategies that eliminate, minimize, and accommodate psychological health issues. Prerequisite: Health & Safety Level 1
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.
Facing Management Effectively
This course will look at economic, political, 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.
Health and Safety Level 1
This introductory Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) course will introduce new committee members and worker representatives to the basic principles of workplace health and safety. This also serves as a great ‘Back to Basics’ course for those OH&S committee members who desire refresher training. In this course, participants will learn the responsibilities and duties of the Joint OH&S Committee, OH&S legislation (provincial and federal), workers’ OH&S rights and the procedure for refusing unsafe work, how to conduct effective incident investigations and safety inspections, identify and assess ergonomic problems in the workplace, and ways of finding solutions.
Labour Community Advocate Level 1
The Labour Community Advocate (formerly Union Counselling) Program is a Canadian Labour Congress training program delivered by Labour Programs and Services staff and funded through the United Way Centraide. This program provides participants with information about the social issues faced by working people and the resources available in their community.
Participants are trained in communication skills, interviewing and referral techniques so they can assist union members to find the appropriate resources. The Labour Community Advocate Training helps workers to find effective solutions and community support for issues outside the scope of their collective agreements. Labour Community Advocates are often the first contact for co-workers with problems and are a valuable resource within any union.
Parliamentary Procedure and 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.
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 lean 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.
Using Modern Tools to Talk with Your Members
Beginning with an internal union communications audit, this course will teach participants how to use a variety of communications tools in order to reach union members whit the union’s message and culminate with a custom internal communications plan. The course will take a look at websites, newsletter/bulletin design and writing skills, crafting effective emails, starting and managing email lists, and basic poster design. Participants will also learn the basics of taking great photos and producing short, engaging videos to better communicate with their union members.
Women in Leadership Level 1
This course offers union women an opportunity to develop and enhance their leadership skills and knowledge in a variety of current and emerging labour issues. A major component of this course will cover communication and motivational skills that are important for women activists.
Week 2 – January 21 – 26, 2018
Bullying and Harassment
Responsibility for bullying in the workplace is shared between workers, the employer, and the union. This course will explore different approaches and tools to address bullying in the workplace, from education programs, legislation, workplace policies and procedure, grievances, and other means within the collective agreement language like labour management committees. The course will also explore the relationship and differences between legislation covering bullying and harassment. We will also look at what the rest of Canada is doing on the topic of bullying and pull examples and lessons from their experiences. Finally, we will review the new B.C. Legislation put out by WorkSafe BC and the implications of this language for OH&S committees and WorkSafe BC claims.
Prerequisite: Applicants must be a steward or member of their Joint Occupational Health and Safety (JOSH) Committee, Bargaining Committee, or Union-Management Committee.
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.
CUPE Member Facilitator Training
CUPE’s education program depends largely on trained member facilitators. CUPE National’s Union Development Department is providing training for new member facilitators in B.C. Participants are selected from the numerous applications received. These successful participants will be invited to attend this specialized training that will focus on adult and popular education facilitation techniques. For any questions about this training, please contact Sister Vanessa Wolff (vwolff@cupe.ca) or Brother Greg Burkitt (gburkitt@cupe.ca) Education Representatives at 604-291-1940, Extensions 240 and 253 respectively. Course registration is through Sister Sophia Yap c/o the Union Education Department at CUPE’s BC Regional Office. Email: syap@cupe.ca, Tel: 604-291-1940 Extension 257.
Facing Management Effectively
This course will look at economic, political, 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.
Health and Safety Level 2
The Health and Safety Level 2 course has been designed to empower participants to develop the tools, resources, and strategies necessary to build on successes and to tackle the tough OH&S issues at their workplaces. In this course, participants will discuss barriers facing joint OH&S committees and develop some creative strategies and solutions to deal with them. Participants will gain an understanding of the theory and practice of occupational hygiene monitoring and interpreting occupational hygiene reports. Learn about the requirements of a violence prevention program in OH&S legislation and the joint committee’s fundamental role in its development. Participants will also learn how to conduct proper risk assessments and how to increase committee effectiveness. Prerequisite: Health and Safety Level 1
Labour Community Advocate Level 2
Labour Community Advocate Level 2 continues to train and educate union members about social issues faced by working people and the resources available in their community to help individuals deal with the personal, workplace or family challenge(s) they are experiencing. In the Level 2 course, Labour Community Advocates will share their experiences as they continue to expand and deepen their knowledge about the various social issues Labour Community Advocates might encounter, and explore the creation of a Labour Community Advocate program in the union. Level 1 training must be completed before registering for Level 2.
Member Engagement – Member Action *Revised
This course is designed for experienced shop stewards, local union leaders and union staff who want to transform how members engage with their union and how their union engages with members.
This course will train participants on the three-step approach to effective member engagement (Go, Listen, Build) and connect it to a three-step approach for building an active membership (one-on-one communication, taking action on worksite issues, and designing a strategy and plan to win).
This training is particularly helpful for unions with upcoming contract negotiations, a backlog of unresolved grievances, a particularly disengaged membership, or a diverse membership that is not reflected in local leadership.
Each participant will leave the training with a worksite specific plan for creating an engaged and active membership as well as a series of measurable goals to evaluate outcomes.
Parliamentary Procedure and 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.
Return to Work (Duty to Accommodate)
This course is designed to equip participants with tools and strategies for successful work reintegration outcomes. Participants will explore leading research and learn the principles of good work reintegration practices and the duty to accommodate. The course has a strong focus on the analysis and interpretation of human rights obligations and particularly the duty to accommodate. Barriers to successful work reintegration are addressed with a focus on attitudinal barriers and their elimination using the social model of disability and therapeutic return to work principles. An in-depth comparison between older methods of disability management and the newer, progressive disability prevention model is presented and participants learn about the paradigm shift from management to prevention.
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 sister or brother 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.
Week 3 – January 28 – February 2, 2018
Arbitration: To Go or Not to Go?
Participants will learn the law with respect to duty of fair representation obligations, as well as the standard arbitral legal tests in relation to discipline, contract interpretation, and evidence. There will also be a legal research component, which will focus on locating the law and conducting efficient legal research. Participants will present an overview of a grievance with recommendations on whether to proceed to arbitration.
Taught by both counsel and arbitrators, this course will provide the legal knowledge required for unions to determine what the critical issues are in individual grievances and to make informed decisions regarding the progress of grievances. One of the most difficult issues facing unions is whether to advance grievances to arbitration. It can be a legal minefield.
Participants should have some experience in the arbitral referral process. A basic arbitration course is recommended. This course does not focus on preparation or presentation of a labour arbitration case. Participants wanting arbitration skills should take a Labour Arbitration Level 1 or 2 course.
Facing Management Effectively
This course will look at economic, political, 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.
Federal Labour Law
This course presents an overview of the federal labour legislation and its impact on the strategies and actions of unions. Among the topics to be explored are: certification and dispute settlement procedures; unfair labour practices; the duty to bargain in good faith; strikes, lockouts, and picketing; the duty of fair representation; management and union rights; and grievance arbitration law. Students will learn to do legal research using basic text books, annotated statutes and online research tools. Theory will be put into practice. Using case studies, students will learn how to prepare for grievance hearing or labour management meeting. Students who have access to a laptop are encouraged to bring it.
Health & Safety Leve 3: Building Activism
Union health and safety activists will share and learn the proven strategies to initiate and conduct a fully effective health and safety campaign in their workplaces and larger communities. Participants will learn how to use their OH&S committees to drive a safety agenda in their workplace. Setting up the proper messaging and communications infrastructure as well as gaining capacity and building allies both internal and external to the workplace will be discussed. Fostering worker participation and building momentum on these issues is some of the most important work that we do in the labour movement. Prerequisite: Health & Safety Level 1
Labour Arbitration Level 1
This course is designed to introduce participants to the practical skills required to prepare and present a case at an arbitration hearing. Special emphasis is placed on evidence, examination and cross-examination, the opening statement and final argument, and you will discuss current trends and cases dealing with the arbitration process. This course would be useful for grievance committee members or chairpersons, or union staff or officers who have not yet had extensive experience with the arbitration process.
Labour Arbitration Level 2
As a follow-up course to Labour Arbitration Level 1, this course has an emphasis on necessary verbal and procedural skills. It deals primarily with the conduct of the hearing for example, with the rules of evidence, examination-in-chief, and cross examination. Prerequisite: Labour Arbitration Level 1 or arbitration experience.
Provincial Labour Law
This course presents an overview of provincial labour legislation and its impact on the strategies and actions of unions. Among topics to be explored are: certification and dispute settlement procedures; unfair labour practices; the duty to bargain in good faith; strikes, lockouts, and picketing; the duty of fair representation; management and union rights; and grievance arbitration law.
Students who take this course will attain a good understanding of the basic principles underlying Canadian labour law and the specifics of labour legislation in B.C.
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 lean 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.
Transforming Conflict into Union Activism
Transforming Conflict into Union Activism approaches conflict in a novel way. It recognizes that conflict isn’t always negative but that it is the outcome of the conflict that is negative or positive. The course will teach participants how to listen to people involved in a conflict, get to the root causes of a conflict, and how to coach people involved in a conflict to identify shared interests. Participants will learn how to use those shared interests to help people involved in a conflict find solutions and turn the conflict and shared interests into union activism.
Unions in the Community *Revised
The labour movement has always played a strong role in the social change movement. As part of the United Way and CLC Labour Community Advocate Program, the course provides training on community involvement and working with community partners as a board, committee or coalition partner. Participants learn how to organize around and participate in community social service issues, while exploring the ways in which unions and other labour bodies can help build resilient and respectful communities. The tools provided help strengthen labour’s community presence and develop new activists and support for issues based campaigns. Participants are also trained to identify community issues where unions can play a role through collective bargaining or social action.
Women’s Health & Safety in the Workplace
All workers face health and safety issues at work – injuries and occupational disease, workplace hazards, and stress. Many of these issues have a gender dimension – they affect women’s bodies in particular ways. In this course, participants will discuss and learn how women’s health (including reproductive health) is affected by toxic workplace substances, by work and tools that are often designed to fit men’s bodies, and by workplace stresses such as violence and harassment. The course will provide the opportunity for you to discuss how the traditional gender-neutral approach to health and safety differs from the relatively new principle of the gender-sensitive approach. You can look forward to improving your skills in assessing workplace hazards and recommending appropriate corrective action. You will also learn about key health and safety principles such as: the precautionary principle, worker health and safety rights and strategies to improve committee effectiveness. This course is intended for women who are health and safety committee members, and for women who want to take a more active role in health and safety at their workplace.
Week 4 – February 4 – 9, 2018
Building Psychologically Healthy Workplaces
Current research confirms that mental health issues are prevalent in B.C. workplaces. Workers who experience mental health issues face incredible challenges in the workplace. Many are misunderstood, stigmatized, and underutilized. From an organizational effectiveness and sustainability perspective, this is a significant business issue and one that requires attention. In a world where shortages of critical skills are, and will continue to be, a priority for many organizations, we cannot afford to allow the situation to continue.
Workplace stress, bullying, harassment, and violence are increasingly the predominant issue for Canadians. Awareness of the staggering economic cost of workplace stress and related issues ($51 billion annually) grows steadily. Research also points to stress as a contributing factor in actual workplace accidents, injuries, and violence, making it a major factor in OH&S.
This course looks at all of the various workplace psychosocial factors and works on developing and implementing as effective plan that will improve the psychological health and safety of a workplace. The course examines strategies that eliminate, minimize, and accommodate psychological health issues. Prerequisite: Health & Safety Level 1
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 Level1 and have some experience on a bargaining committee.
CUPW Fighting Back: Local Postal Worker Power & Media Training
This course is about building alliances in the community, labour movement and workplace. It will increase participants’ awareness of their power and explores how to forge community/labour movement/workplace alliances. Members find the roles they can play to strengthen their individual parts, and as a whole.
With the Media Training component, participants enhance their understanding of the media, and learn how to create and deliver a clear, effective message. They also look at the use of social and community media. A CUPW media specialist delivers some of this course and assists with media role-plays.
Applications are available through your Local Executive. To be considered, all applications must be signed by your Local President or their designate.
Note: This course is recommended for local executive members who interact with the media, or members who may do so in the future.
Facing Management Effectively
This course will look at economic, political, 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.
Health and Safety Level 1
This introductory Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) course will introduce new committee members and worker representatives to the basic principles of workplace health and safety. This also serves as a great ‘Back to Basics’ course for those OH&S committee members who desire refresher training. In this course, participants will learn the responsibilities and duties of the Joint OH&S Committee, OH&S legislation (provincial and federal), workers’ OH&S rights and the procedure for refusing unsafe work, how to conduct effective incident investigations and safety inspections, identify and assess ergonomic problems in the workplace, and ways of finding solutions.
ILWU Leadership
This course offers ILWU members an opportunity to strengthen and build leadership qualities while learning about the functions within our union, International leadership, ethics and much more.
The week will also include opportunities to practice leadership skills in a group setting. Prerequisite: Applicants must be a member or casual of ILWU.
Labour Arbitration Level 1
This course is designed to introduce participants to the practical skills required to prepare and present a case at an arbitration hearing. Special emphasis is placed on evidence, examination and cross-examination, the opening statement and final argument, and you will discuss current trends and cases dealing with the arbitration process. This course would be useful for grievance committee members or chairpersons, or union staff or officers who have not yet had extensive experience with the arbitration process.
Steward Training Level 2
This course is for chief stewards, business and assistant business managers, local officers, and stewards with considerable experience handling grievances. You will practice more advanced grievance-handling skills using real life case studies and role plays. Participants will discuss discipline grievances, harassment, drug and alcohol issues, and different styles of management. This course will deal with procedures before the process of arbitration.
Knowledge of the first stages of the grievance process will be assumed. Prerequisite: Steward Training Level 1 or equivalent union course.
Young Workers in Action
This course is designed to give young union activists the skills they need to be effective in their workplace. The course will cover public speaking, how meetings are run, how to read your contract, grievance handling, and the basic collective bargaining process.
Participants are requested to bring a copy of their collective agreement.
Week 5 – February 13 – 16, 2018 (Starts Tuesday)
BCFED Organizing Institute: Basics of Organizing
The BCFED Organizing Institute three-day training covers the basics of union organizing to build power within our unions and to organize new workers into unions. This is an opportunity to learn and practice leading effective organizing conversations with peers and experienced organizers from across our movement. The course is designed to be an intensive training session that simulates the conditions of union organizing. Evening sessions are part of the core curriculum and participants will be expected to work as a group throughout the course, both inside and outside the classroom – just like in a real organizing campaign. Participation is encouraged from people who represent the diversity of our workforces.
Benefits Bargaining
This course will help you understand how health and welfare benefits are structured and how to prepare for benefits bargaining. The course will include information on new and renewed benefit plans and how to handle a change in benefits carriers. Topics for discussion will include: costing of benefits, employers’ response to increasing costs and changes in coverages, funding methods including trusts, laws pertaining to benefits coverage, privacy issues, collective agreement language ideas, types of benefit plans to avoid and why.
Candidate Development for Women
Are you a woman who has been elected in your local union, provincial, or community organization? Are you looking to increase your support base and engage a wider audience? Have you run or considered running in a municipal, provincial, or federal campaign? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this course is for you!
This course is a next step for women leaders, designed to address the day to day challenges in the face of high stress campaigns. Participants will take away new ways of campaigning, strategic planning, and framing our message. By building on communications and presentation skills, participants will leave with the tools to best communicate their message in on camera interviews, face to face debates, and with new media.
Medical Orientation
A comprehensive program to assist union staff and advanced health and safety, workers compensation, and return to work advocates, this course is designed to break down the barrier of communicating in ‘medicalese’. Through straightforward explanations and exercises, medical terminology is broken down into understandable terms. Participants will learn about basic human anatomy, body functions and systems, diagnostic testing and surgical procedures. We will focus on areas that are common to WCB and/or Occupational Health and Safety advocacy. Specific work related injuries will be discussed with an in-depth look at occupational diseases and how to prove a causal relationship. Actual medical reports will be used throughout the course. Prerequisite: WCB Level 1, Health and Safety Level 1, or Return to Work.
Mental Health First Aid
The Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training course was developed by the Mental Health Commission of Canada to help people provide initial support to someone who may be developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis. MHFA teaches mental health first aid skills. The course does not train people to be therapists, counselors, or mental health professionals. The philosophy behind MHFA is that a mental health crisis, such as suicidal and self-harming actions, may be avoided through early intervention. If a crisis does arise, an MHFA trained person in the workplace can take action that may reduce the harm that could result. Just as physical first aid is administered to an injured person before medical treatment can be obtained, MHFA is given until appropriate treatment is found or until the crisis is resolved. This course is ideal for union stewards or representatives, joint health and safety committee members, business representatives, local staff, first aid attendants, or anyone that wishes to increase their skills to support their fellow members.
Supervisor OH&S Responsibilities
Bargaining unit supervisors play a critical role in the workplace because they have the authority to oversee the work of others. As such, supervisors have considerable responsibilities under Occupational Health & Safety Legislation. A supervisor is required to be qualified by knowledge, training and experience in the work they oversee, be familiar with the legislation that applies to their workplace and knowledgeable about actual or potential workplace hazards, so they can in turn advise workers about these hazards. In this course participants will: discuss legal requirements and responsibilities (provincial and federal) and learn about the supervisor’s role in addressing work refusals and conducting investigations and workplace inspections. They will also learn the principles of demonstration of ‘due diligence’, the development and implementation of SWPs (safe work procedures) specific to OH&S programs, and how to demonstrate leadership and communicate effectively by developing and conducting safety crew talks. This program also reviews relevant case law and provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada (Bill C-45) to help participants better identify types of work that are supervisory in nature and their related legal duties, and understand the consequences of non-compliance.
USW “BE MORE THAN A BYSTANDER” Spokesperson Training Speaking Up to Gender-Based Violence
Building on the success of the message delivered by the BC Lions and End Violence Associations (EVA) “Be More Than a Bystander” campaign, the United Steelworkers are excited to be partnering with EVA to train USW men from across Western Canada to be leaders in changing our culture and standing up to violence against women in our workplaces and our communities.
This will be an intensive session for Steelworker local union leaders who will broaden their understanding of sexual assault, domestic violence and sexual harassment in Canada. They will leave with an in-depth understanding of the bystander model and the role men play in leading and speaking up to end gender-based violence. Members who complete this training will be equipped to lead sessions within their local unions and with USW employers, including both members and supervisors.