Canada’s leading union participates in “Labor’s Voice” discussion on LGBTQ12S rights

Los Angeles, California – June 25, 2021 – Activists from UFCW OUTreach, the United Food and Commercial Workers’ constituency group dedicated to building mutual support between UFCW and the LGBTQI2S community, recently participated in the live-streamed show, Labor’s Voice, to discuss LGBTQI2S workers’ rights in North America.

Hosted at the UCLA Labor Center in Los Angeles, California, Labor’s Voice streams live on social media and regularly features union activists from across the United States and Canada.

As a guest panelist on the show, UFCW Canada’s Coordinator of Human Rights, Equity, and Diversity, Emmanuelle Lopez, shared a range of recommendations for trade unions that are looking to strengthen LGBTQI2S inclusion in their bargaining units.

The recommendations came from the report entitled, Union values and LGBTQ+ worker experiences: a survey of UFCW workers in the United States and Canada, which offers an analysis of the labour movement’s role in working to end systemic and institutional inequities at work.

A collaboration between UFCW OUTreach and the UCLA Labor Center, the report is a breakthrough in addressing the concerns of LGBTQ+ workers and has set a historic precedent for documenting unionized LGBTQ+ worker experiences in Canada and the United States.

Viewers of the popular live show also gained an important perspective from Shirley Hepditch, a UFCW Locals 175 & 633 activist and UFCW OUTreach board member, who spoke about the importance of collective bargaining language that protects LGBTQI2S workers from discrimination and harassment in the workplace.

To watch the full stream of the Labor’s Voice discussion on LGBTQI2S workers’ rights, click here. To learn more about Labor’s Voice, visit the show’s website.