Winnipeg – May 23, 2019 – UFCW Canada’s national executive board, the National Council, recently met in Winnipeg to review programs and strategies and build strength for Canada’s leading union.

The UFCW Canada National Council meets twice a year to assess the state of the union, decide on national approaches for empowering members, and to develop plans for helping more workers join the union. The council is comprised of UFCW National and Local Union leaders and representatives.

In Winnipeg, National Council members were updated on UFCW Canada’s workplace rights, women and gender equity, young workers, education, diversity and inclusion, and political action programs. A number of special reports were also reviewed by the council, including a whitepaper on the potential impacts of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation – and bargaining, retraining, and organizing strategies to deal with them.

Council members also reviewed a report on UFCW Canada’s recent success in bringing UFCW Canada membership to five groups of cannabis workers in Ontario and Quebec, and how to extend those organizing efforts to other cannabis production and retail workers across the country. Campaign development and mobilization to counter potential anti-worker legislation was also explored.

Manitoba’s largest private-sector union, UFCW Canada Local 832, was the host for the Winnipeg meeting, which coincided with the 100th anniversary of the Winnipeg General Strike. In addition to the meeting, members of the National Council attended a special event organized by the Manitoba Federation of Labour to commemorate the General Strike as one of the most significant events in the evolution of Canada’s trade union movement.