Monday, June 12, 2023

We Are CLAC

I may not like every decision that CLAC makes, but at its core, it does good—and means to do good

By Wayne Lodge, Local 68 steward

Unions suck. Okay, hear me out.

I come from a small town in eastern Canada. We’re talking 6-7,000 people. Some of the best jobs in town were at the local pulp mill, which made some of the highest-grade high-gloss paper in the world.

I never worked there myself, but my father walked in when they opened the doors in the early ’70s and was there close to the end when the doors shut almost40 years later. Many of our friends and family worked there, including my sister and my wife, who both had summer jobs at the mill. It was the lifeblood of our little community.

I remember the Christmas parties at the mill and tours with our Cub Scout troop. But I also remember my dad and his buddies going on strike. We had to tighten our belts a little around the house while they refused work to “fight” for wage increases.

Then the modern era hit. Increases to the cost of power and labour and plummeting demand for paper worldwide seemed to spell certain doom for the lifeline of our small town.

The mill management said they would have to lay off half the workforce in an attempt to “save the mill.” The union reps thought they could reject the offer and get a big ol’ severance payout for the members, and intime the mill would resume operations and hire most of them back.

But the union reps went into hiding. No conversations took place, no collective bargaining, no talks made in good faith to reach an understanding or agreement with the mill to attempt to save it, and management made good on its promise and closed the doors.

Hundreds of workers who were the lifeblood of a small town were now out of work. Sure, eventually they got their severance, but they also took turns standing in line at the employment office.

Traditional unions have done a lot of good over the years, not just their claim to weekends, but increases to employment standards and safety that are far-reaching and impact even those who are not part of a union.

My own personal experiences with unions both growing up and later as a worker didn’t give me any reason to think any more highly of them. After earning a couple college diplomas, I made a choice to become a scaffolder and then turned pipeliner—and proud of it.

Working in the trades, I’ve been part of many unions. I always felt that they were simply taking my dues and never felt like anyone was representing me or fighting for me. No one was around to answer my tough questions.

Do you know how many representatives I have met from the other unions I have been a part of? A total of zero. That’s how I got to my opinion that unions suck. Bad taste after bad taste.

That is, until I joined CLAC. Before I worked my first CLAC job, I was part of the voting process for the agreement I would work under. I was met by a gentleman who was to become my representative and who was there to explain the process and walk me through each step.

He answered the phone when I called, or at the very least called me back in a very timely manner. He was available! You can imagine my surprise.

Then I met job stewards. I hit the lotto with some of my first. Guys who would tell me the truth whether it was good news or not. Not guys who would hide when the hard conversations needed to be had, but ones who would listen to my concern, make me feel heard.

I’ve been a CLAC member now for over 10 years. I may not like every decision that’s made but at its core, it does good—and means to do good. I don’t mean like satisfactory. I mean good, like wholesome good. The best-decision good, even if I’m too stubborn to see it. And at the end of the day, they still answer the phone when I call and are willing to have those tough conversations with me.

I don’t have to support every decision to support the union when I feel supported. I’ve met CLAC staff from those answering the phones right up to the guy at the top, Wayne Prins, executive director.

I can tell you, from the bottom of my heart, this union is the best. I’ve been yelled at for CLAC. I’ve had things thrown at me for this union. I’ve deleted my social media account for this union. I’ve created social media accounts for this union. I’ve been in fights for this union.

I would do it all again because I believe in this union. I have been supported by this union. It is the best union. We are the best union. We are CLAC.

We Are CLAC

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