TORONTO,
ONTARIO--(Marketwire
- Nov. 25, 2009) - Uniting the labour
movement in Ontario, taking a leadership role in building the new 'green
economy' and reaching out to unorganized workers by giving them a reason to
join a union, will be the focus for the labour movement in Ontario for the next
two years, said Sid Ryan, the newly elected president of the Ontario Federation
of Labour (OFL).
Ryan,
the Ontario president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario
for the last 17 years, was chosen president of Canada's largest labour
federation at the OFL's biannual convention in Toronto earlier today.
Convention delegates embraced Ryan's activist vision for the
labour movement as a progressive voice for working people, one that takes a
leadership role in building social cohesion and in forging the new economy. Our
future rests in creating a positive movement of the left by opening the doors
of the labour movement and broadening our alliances with environmentalists,
social justice advocates, affordable housing activists and young workers," said
Ryan.
He acknowledged the challenges faced by all workers today as
employers emboldened by the economic downturn are making aggressive moves to
roll back wages and working conditions. "They are doing this by demonizing and
scapegoating unionized workers and creating a culture of envy that pits workers
against one another," said Ryan, who stressed that all workers should have
access to a decent pension, quality public child care and post-secondary
education for their children.
Throughout the convention, Ryan highlighted that unifying the
labour movement in Ontario would be a priority in his first term as the
federation's new president.
"During economic upheaval, marked by the rise of low-wage,
part-time jobs, the decline in union density, high unemployment and aggressive
attempts to roll back unionized workers' wages, benefits and pensions—a divided
labour movement—is an easy target.
"Only a strong and united labour front working in solidarity with
community partners will be able to withstand the attack. And labour in Ontario
will be unified and ready to meet the challenge," said Ryan, in recognizing the
importance of the return of the Canadian Autoworkers (CAW) to the OFL.