Executive Leadership

Dick Heinen – Executive Director

Dick has been a CLAC member since 1968 when he joined as a carpenter’s helper—the first step in him eventually becoming a journeyman carpenter. He’s maintained his membership ever since, except for a period of several years when he was the employer himself in a construction company.

Since joining our executive team in 1995, Dick has appreciated being part of providing quality representation that’s respectful of the entire person, instead of only being concerned with the technical parts of collective agreements. As part of our team, he’s engaged in dialogue that gets to the real nature of the problems and found solutions that work long term.

In particular, Dick feels proud about his success as a rep for pipeline members. He found working through five sets of negotiations during both slow and busy years difficult but rewarding. Another highlight was the successes he enjoyed while managing CLAC’s expansion into Fort McMurray.

Today, Dick manages our affairs at the national level, including the activity of our reps and the support structure that serves our members.

Away from the office, Dick has volunteered with many efforts over the years, from helping the disadvantaged to coaching soccer. These days, however, his time is taken up by the needs of his grandchildren and family. As he says, “It’s amazing how often a carpenter is still needed here and there.”
 

Return to top

Hank Beekhuis – Ontario Director

Hank started off his career as a self-employed sheet metal worker and then went on to six years of union work in the construction industry both before and after college. He graduated with a bachelor of arts degree (major in history and minor in political science) and joined CLAC in 1967.

Community is especially important to Hank. He served for six years on a health council advisory board, and has held leadership positions in his church. Today, he’s involved in local politics and is the president of a 600-person volunteer group working to preserve heritage buildings in the community.

That same sense of community has stayed with Hank ever since he began working for us in 1979. As he puts it, “Building relationships and providing honest representation that respects everyone is the key to positive unionism in Canada today.” And Hank’s proud to be part of a union that provides the level of service that workers deserve.

As a rep, he’s worked hard to make sure everyone’s rights were respected and their voices were heard—especially those who couldn’t speak for themselves. As an organizer, he was part of the massive growth we experienced in the 1980s. And as a specialist in interest arbitration, Hank introduced us to progressive ways to operate as a union.

Hank has filled many roles during his time with us. He was our Ontario representative specializing in health care for 25 years. He was the regional director for the Grimsby office from the time it opened until 2007. Since then, he’s been the Ontario director and is currently in charge of the head office staff. Hank has also shown his commitment by serving on the national executive committee for most of the time he’s been with us.
 

 Return to top

Dennis Perrin – Prairies Director

Dennis joined the CLAC team in August 2004 as an Alberta representative in the Edmonton regional office. He primarily represented members working in the industrial construction sector in northern Alberta and was involved in negotiations that positively impacted our members in places such as Grande Prairie, Slave Lake, High Level, Conklin, Edmonton, and Fort McMurray.

In June 2008, Dennis relocated to the Fort McMurray office where he represented our members working in the oilsands industry. He was involved in a number of key negotiations, including as lead negotiator on behalf of over 1,000 members of Construction Workers Union, Local 63, employed by Flint Industrial.

Dennis has a bachelor of science degree in environmental studies and biology. He has a wide variety of work experience—everything from industrial construction and logging to teaching English overseas and working as an admissions counsellors at a local university. His varied experiences have impressed upon him the value of work and the many sacrifices that our members make to provide for themselves and their families.

“I strongly believe that we have a responsibility to provide the highest quality representation to each and every CLAC member. At the same time, we have to strive to improve the work community as a whole.”

Dennis recently relocated to Saskatoon to oversee our Saskatchewan and Manitoba operations. “I’m excited about the opportunity to expand our model of professional representation and bring some much-needed union choice to workers in the Prairies.”

Return to top

Wayne Prins – Alberta Director

Wayne was first introduced to CLAC in 2001 as an equipment operator working on the Diavik Diamond Mine project in the Northwest Territories. In 2003, after completing a bachelor of arts degree in environmental studies and business administration, he joined CLAC as a representative in the Edmonton office.

In the summer of 2004, Wayne moved to Fort McMurray to open a new CLAC office to support the union’s growing presence in Alberta’s oilsands industry. CLAC’s membership in Fort McMurray quickly grew from approximately 500 members in 2004 to nearly 9,000 members in 2008.

In the fall of 2008, Wayne joined our executive team and was appointed Fort McMurray regional director. Today, he manages the union’s affairs for Alberta, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.

Wayne’s passion for serving CLAC’s membership was cultivated by a deep-rooted respect for the sacrifices that so many CLAC members make to work in Fort McMurray. “Many of our members are forced to work out of town due to a lack of job opportunities near home. They leave for prolonged periods of time to work in Alberta’s far north, enduring some very harsh conditions at times to provide for their families back home.”

Wayne believes that all workers deserve a safe place to work where they are treated fairly and with dignity and respect. He is proud to work for a union that believes in a progressive model of cooperative labour relations. Not only does it make the work of a union rep more enjoyable, he has seen firsthand the positive impact it has on the lives of CLAC members. Wayne looks forward to the challenges and opportunities of continuing to serve our members in a leadership role.
 

Return to top

David Prentice – BC Director

David is no stranger to helping others. In the fall of 2000, he was recognized for his service as treasurer of a not-for-profit registered agency operating a halfway house in Lethbridge, Alberta, for people struggling with substance abuse.

Around that same time, he joined us at CLAC, drawn by our values of dignity, respect, fairness, and justice, and, as he says it, our “professional representation ethic that considers the long term interest of our members.”

And David walks his talk. For six years, he worked out of our Edmonton office as a rep, serving northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories including the greater Edmonton area, Grande Prairie, Fort McMurray, Cold Lake, and Norman Wells.

He negotiated key agreements for the Fort McMurray region and represented us on the negotiating team for the CNRL Division 8 Horizon Construction Management Limited agreement that covered our members, Building Trade Union members, other union-affiliated members, and open shop employees.

Since relocating to British Columbia in 2009, David’s new role is to oversee our BC operations.

Fortunately, David’s more than ready for the challenge and will continue to draw on his training in labour relations, negotiations, project management, and conflict resolution.
 

Return to top