by Barry Weisleder
The Workers’ Action Movement joined the OPSEU Local 5117 picket line on Monday, July 12, at 480 University Avenue in downtown Toronto. The building pictured below houses the management law firm that is obstructing negotiations and prolonging the strike of the Black Creek Community Health Center workers. They demand the 1 per cent wage increase, in each of three years, guaranteed by provincial law.
In a speech to the strikers and allies I cited numerous labour battles now underway against bosses who want workers to pay for the pandemic with pay, benefit and job security concessions, including frozen wages.
But nickel miners in Sudbury (USW Local 6500), meat packers in the Beauce region of Quebec (members of the CSN), Nestle workers at the chocolate plant in Toronto (Unifor Local 252), and locked-out employees of the National Rubber Industries (USW Local 3950) say No to concessions of any kind.
Workers can defeat the capitalist austerity drive through unity in action. We need mass job action across the board. An injury to one is an injury to all. Let’s mobilize the ranks, and put the Movement back into the Labour Movement.