The Parliamentary trolley, on its way back from the Senate, stops in front of the Prime Minister’s Office in the Langevin Block. The dog at left was never owned by Prime Minister W.L. Mackenzie King, who was well known in his day as a labour expert, although it clearly does
Continue readingTag: Russ Hiebert
OPSEU Diablogue: Conservatives vs. Conservatives – Anti-union bill gets gutted in Canadian Senate
When the Federal Tories took “progressive” out of their title after merging with the Reform Party, it was inevitable that the radical right wing ideology of the Reformers would come into conflict with the more pragmatic former Progressive Conservatives. This … Continue reading →
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Bill C-377 can be just the start – let’s shine a light on some corners that are really in the dark!
The ideal Canadian workforce, Harper Conservative style. Below: Social conservative B.C. MP Russ Hiebert. Well, you can’t fight a call for transparency, so why bother? I say, if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em! The so-called Conservative Party of Stephen Harper quietly whipped its troops in the privacy of their
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Unions Under Attack: A Star Reader Writes
In two recent posts, I discussed Bill C-377, a Harper-driven anti-union measure disguised as a private member’s bill. Introduced by Conservative MPP Russ Hiebert, it is designed to require full disclosure of all union expenditures, including monies a…
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Rand Formula Under Attack
The other day I wrote a post about Bill C-377, ostensibly a private member’s bill put forward by Conservative MP Russ Hiebert that would subject unions to unprecedented scrutiny. It is, in fact, a bill being guided by the Prime Minister’s Office. In …
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Not-So-Hidden-Hand of Harper
Although I believe unreservedly in the vital role that unions play in both protecting and promoting workers’ rights, I make no apologies for the times that I have been critical of them. Cronyism, questionable expenditures, and corruption have no pla…
Continue readingAlberta Diary: There is a God: Merit Contractors, advocates of Bill C-377, would be caught in its web
Tory MP wonders about Bill C-377: “Is anybody really interested in breaching Sally the Receptionist’s privacy because she earns 40k answering the phones at the Union Hiring Hall?” Below: Stephen Kushner. Surely it is one of life’s little ironies that among the groups certain to be caught in the web
Continue readingAlberta Diary: MP Russ Hiebert’s anti-union campaign: is Bill C-377 another Tory ‘own-goal’?
Unidentified Conservative Party Member of Parliament contemplates B.C. Tory MP Russ Hiebert’s “own goal.” Strangely, actual Harper Government MPs may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: Mr. Hiebert. What are Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s boon companions in the courts, fern-encrusted law offices, plush executive suites of provincial medical associations and
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