Bea Bruske, Siobhán Vipond, Larry Rousseau and Lily Chang have been re-elected to their Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) executive positions after running uncontested.
Bruske will continue as CLC president, Rousseau and Vipond will continue their work as vice-presidents and Chang is continuing as Secretary-Treasurer.
Delegates at the CLC conference received the news on Wednesday during the scheduled election forum.
“I really thank everyone in this room because 23 months ago, you placed your trust in me to lead this organization,” Bruske said to CLC convention delegates on Wednesday. “When I ran for this position, I ran to try to re-engage and re-energize the movement. That remains the same today.”
The candidates ran for their respective positions as a group under the name Team Unite. Bruske, Vipond and Chang were first elected to their positions in 2021 and Rousseau has been in his elected position since 2017.
“I believe in teamwork, and so do Bea, Lily and Siobhán. We have become an extraordinary team,” Rousseau said during Wednesday’s election forum.
The group wrote on their website that, over the last 23 months, they have been using a collaborative leadership style. The team’s website promises to continue using collaborative leadership to deliver victories for workers.
READ MORE: Canadian Labour Congress talks affordability first day of convention
“Despite being elected amid the COVID-19 pandemic and so many of the challenges that came with it, we are proud of what we have achieved for workers in Canada over the past two years,” the Team Unite website reads.
Beyond promises to fulfill commitments that Team Unite has already made to CLC members, the group also addressed how they plan on building solidarity and unity within the organization.
The topic of inter-union solidarity within the CLC is top of mind for some, as the British Columbia Nurses’ Union (BCNU) rejoined the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) in November. This development brought about some discomfort, as the BCNU has faced allegations of raiding other unions’ members.
“We have to respect our Constitution, and we have to respect no raiding,” Bruske said. “That goes no matter what sector of the economy you’re in and no matter what sector of the country you are in. But we also need to grow our movement. We have to find pathways back together. That doesn’t mean leaving the hurt and the anger behind. That means finding a way to work through that conflict by having some honest discussions, by building pathways back and by having the unions who have been wronged at the table to have those discussions. Growing our movement means bringing us back together again so that we can be stronger for all workers in Canada, not just for those workers who are currently affiliated to the CLC.”
The group wrote on their campaign website that they helped bring about major victories for the working class. The victories include helping to negotiate and develop the affordable child care framework, helping to negotiate legislation guaranteeing 10 days of federal paid sick leave and helping to broker the confidence and supply agreement between the Liberal government and the NDP.
“We filled staff vacancies at our headquarters and on our regional offices so that members can have access to all the supports and services that they need from us,” Chang said on Wednesday, “We invested in political action and digital communication, to engage more activists across the country, and then to better direct their energy into the campaigns for better pensions for national childcare program and a strong anti scab legislation.”
The team also reiterated its dedication to equity and diversity and committed to do their part to advance reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.
“I am so proud of all the work that we have done,” Vipond told CLC convention delegates. “It is work that I wanted to continue to do with all of you. Moving forward, we need a labor movement that is active, diverse and worker-led. This means that we are going to practice our solidarity, we’re going to live our solidarity.”
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