Bea Bruske, Newly Elected Canadian Labour Congress President, Shares Her Vision for the Labour Movement with IFPTE
Just weeks after being elected CLC President, Bea Bruske took the time last week to sit down with IFPTE International Representative David Sauer and discuss her vision for the future of Canada’s labour movement, her take on the key Canadian industries that employ thousands of IFPTE members, and how she sees Canada’s unions working more cohesively together.
President Bruske, who comes out of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 832 in Manitoba, highlighted that her priorities include getting CLC-affiliated unions “back to working cohesively together, and to supporting one another and to making sure that one affiliates fight is everybody’s fight…. Whether you're sweeping the floor or you're a highly skilled technical person or an engineer or whatever, the pressures are the same.”
In terms of protecting public sector work, President Bruske said she will make sure that the CLC will “advocate for strong public services and that we lobby governments at all levels to invest in public services and infrastructure.”
IFPTE congratulates President Bruske offers our union’s appreciation for informing our members of her leadership priorities as she takes the helm at the CLC. We look forward to hearing from her at IFPTE’s upcoming convention in August.
Read the full interview below.
Canadian Labour Congress President Bea Bruske
David Sauer, IFPTE: Hello and thank you very much for taking the time to meet with IFPTE. We would also like to extend our congratulations on your successful campaign for Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) president.
Bea Bruske: Thank very much and it’s a pleasure to be speaking with you.
IFPTE: What made you decide to run for the position of the CLC?
Bea Bruske: I really feel very strongly that labour is at a crossroads in the sense that, although most unions have the same goals in terms of making sure worker issues are at the forefront of what government decisions are, and that we can bargain good collective agreements, and that we can get the good legislation that we can and make the average member of the public aware of what labour issues are. I feel that a lot of the CLC affiliates are going in different directions trying to accomplish the same thing, and that we're not working cohesively together, and we absolutely need to get back to working cohesively together, and to supporting one another and to making sure that one affiliates fight is everybody’s fight and putting all our resources in one basket because our opponents are definitely working more collectively than we are. And that's problematic.
IFPTE: In that respect, where do you see professional workers fit in because we represent about 80,000-90,000 professional workers in North America?
Bea Bruske:That's a good point because really, I think organizing professional workers has not been developed as much as it needs to. In my mind, anybody who receives a paycheck that doesn't have their signature at the bottom is a worker, so it doesn't matter the kind of work that you're doing. Whether you're sweeping the floor or you're a highly skilled technical person or an engineer or whatever, the pressures are the same.
I think labour hasn't always necessarily focused on professional classifications of workers in terms of organizing them or representing them. We need to make sure that we expand our capacity to have active organizing drives and to support the unions that are doing that organizing with those workers. From the CLC’s perspective, the role in that, is to make sure that workers of all backgrounds and all descriptions understand why unions are important and why belonging to a union has a huge benefit for them within their workplace.
The CLC’s job really is to do that public outreach campaign to foster the understanding of the work that unions do on behalf of workers. And to build up worker knowledge on how workers can become engaged within their organization and within the labour movement. To understand how that can make a difference when they're asking for a raise from their boss or asking for other workplace adjustments in order to make their work life better.
IFPTE: Where do you see the role of an international unions? There's been a lot of controversy in Canada, especially with the departure of Unifor, and a different light has been shown on international unions in some respects. How do you see international unions and their role in Canada?
Bea Bruske: Coming from a large international union myself, UFCW, I absolutely see the value of working with our cross-border union family. A lot of the employers we work for are large international employers. What happens in one country plays out in another country as well, and that's true of the members of UFCW. Oftentimes we've worked in tandem with our union family in the United States to find out what Coca Cola is up to. What's X grocery chain up to in their jurisdiction? Of course, Safeway used to be a large owned American firm out of California, and we have an extensive history of bargaining with them in Canada. Decisions affecting Canadian workers are often made in boardrooms outside of Canada.
Therefore, I see working within an international union as a benefit. Not only that, but having the ability to have resources and have the ability to get the education from a larger international union is also hugely helpful. I know for us it has helped in terms of developing negotiators and developing negotiation skills, because whether you're negotiating in California or in Winnipeg, the pressures are the same and the process is the same. The other important piece is the fact that labour work also means doing international work on human rights issues, and what better way than when you already have your own union or other unions that exist in other parts of the world that we can connect with and collaborate with. So, I see a huge role for international unions in so many different aspects. I don't see it as being ruled by an international union. I think that the Canadian contingent of our various affiliates are strong and independent in their own way. Certainly, coming from the UFCW world, we have a very strong Canadian component. We have our own focus. We have our own financial aspects to it, so I don't see it as being beholden to an international in that way. I see it is only beneficial, quite frankly.
IFPTE: In Canada, our three main areas we represent are: Telecommunications with TEAM Local 161 at Bell MTS. We also have multiple former public utility components in Ontario such as Hydro One, Ontario Hydro, Bruce Power, etc. And finally, we have municipal professionals in Winnipeg and Saskatoon.
What are some of the challenges you see that the CLC could help workers in these industries/sectors?
Bea Bruske: I think they’re almost the same for all three in many ways. Maybe I can give you a broader answer and then we can delve into the commonalities. First and foremost, I think the role of the CLC is to educate the members of the public about the importance of public services and those kind of tie in to all three of those in different aspects. The public don't always recognize the value of having something that's publicly owned until after it isn't anymore, and then seeing costs go up and services go down. Part of the mandate is to make sure that we advocate for strong public services and that we lobby governments at all levels to invest in public services and infrastructure. More specifically, on telecommunications with all the changes that have happened over the last 15-20 years, making sure that legislation at the federal level keeps up to date with the needs of our society when it comes to telecommunications and how we've structured it. We need to be making sure it's accessible and ensuring the average Canadian can afford the services that they need and that those services are available in their communities. We have huge rural and northern areas that are underserved in many ways. So we need to ensure we can build on that capacity. For example, making sure the infrastructure is there to expand it across all regions in a cost-effective way has to be a part of what we speak to at the CLC. It goes to communities meeting their needs and meeting workers needs where they're at in different parts of Canada.
Electricity in Ontario, I see that very much in the same vein as Bell MTS. Its deregulation and it's selling off bits and pieces to the point where you have nothing left, and then it's just another cash cow for the existing government to sell off. And so again, it's making sure that we fight back at every level against privatization and against deregulation on those sectors and municipalities.
Winnipeg, in terms of the water privatization. The recent vote that happened at City Hall reminds me that often, the average citizen is so bombarded by so many issues happening in their own life, and in their work life, and in their community that they don't necessarily have the time to think about what these decisions mean. So, there's a tendency to not pay attention to it, because it doesn't seem like an immediate problem. Then of course when we sell off all these assets and we aren't paying attention and we're not speaking out, we don't have a whole heck of a lot left. Raising awareness at each point and finding ways to actively engaging all workers on these issues is what I see the role of the CLC to be.
IFPTE: What's the best way to tackle the privatization of those industries and sectors?
Bea Bruske: It is political action, and it has to be worker engagement number one and political action number two. They kind of flow into one another. If we can get workers to understand the power of their voice and the power of their vote, and get them to use it, and consistently go out to vote, and vote in their own best interests, that's a huge chunk of the battle. It is a big priority for me at the CLC over the next 22 months in this role that I've been elected to, to actively foster workers’ political engagement. To find ways to connect with people. Starting those conversations in workplaces will be the best thing that I can do. I really, truly believe that, because we all get so dragged down by the reality of the challenges that we have to live with every day. Oftentimes those lunchroom conversations at the lunchroom tables are the best way to grow that engagement. I really think that has to be the priority for us. Finding and building on a worker outreach strategy, ensuring the message is engaging and invites active participation is the key.
IFPTE: Thank you very much for your insight today, Bea. We really appreciate you taking the time to meet with us and share your vision of workers rights and the CLC. We wish you nothing but success in the future. Congratulations once again.
Bea Bruske: Thank you so much Dave. I appreciate it. We look forward to working with all the IFPTE locals in Canada to further the CLC’s goals.
Read the CLC’s statement, "Canada’s Unions Elect New Leaders to Help Chart a Hopeful Post-Pandemic Future for Workers”