IUOE News Winter 2013

Ups and downs in
2013, but a promising
year lies ahead.
Craig McIntosh,
Member Representative
2013 was a good year for members of the Operating Engineers,
with hours of work up over 2012. Many of these hours
came from projects that started prior to 2013 and are now
finishing up, such as work on Highway 1 and the South Perimeter
Road in the Lower Mainland. These were the largest
highway projects in the Lower Mainland
since the 80’s when the Alex Fraser
Bridge and Highway 91 were built.
The next highway project? The
provincial government has announced
its intentions to replace the Massey
Tunnel with a new bridge, and upgrade Highway 99 to the
border, starting in 2017.
However, it looks like they have washed their hands of
replacing the Patullo Bridge, and left it up to Translink to deal
with, who are simply without the money to build it. This will
put a long delay on the project, but in the meantime the Evergreen
line will provide work to our members for the next two
years or more.
In addition to being a busy year for negotiations, 2013 saw
a huge effort by Business Manager Brian Cochrane and the
Local to bring the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to
media headlines across Canada.
Many Canadians had no idea regarding the impact the
Temporary Foreign Worker Program has on everyday local
workers until the Operating Engineers and the Construction
and Specialized Workers Union exposed the plan by HD
Mining to bring 200 Chinese miners to Tumbler Ridge to
longwall an underground mine, instead of hiring Canadians.
The federal government did make some changes to the
program after its flaws were exposed and the Canadian public
and media blasted them for it.
We have not heard the end of this issue. Canadian businesses
will continue to lobby government, saying there are
shortages of skilled people and they must look to cheap
foreign labour rather than invest in training our young people.
It is wrong that the Canadian government has allowed the
number of Temporary Foreign Workers coming to Canada to
surpass the number of immigrants who can legitimately apply
to become permanent residents in as little as one year, and
“We need the jobs, economic
benefits and government
revenues to support our
expectations and lifestyles”
District One
ultimately become valuable citizens.
The biggest surprise of 2013 had to be the NDP blowing a
20-point lead in the polls and losing the provincial election in
May. The turning point? When Adrian Dix said he would not
allow the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion project to go
ahead if he became premier, and the NDP got tagged as the
No Development Party.
Joe Lunchbox has figured it out: What the hell am I going
to do for work when B.C. becomes one big park? We already
have a Green Party. The NDP has to get back to its roots and
represent working people and good paying resource development
jobs. Whether it is coal exports, mining, natural gas or
pipelines, we need the jobs, economic benefits and government
revenues to support our expectations and lifestyles.
Jack Munro, who recently passed away, was the leader of
B.C.’s largest union, the IWA, during the
70’s and 80’s. Munro was a lifelong
supporter of the NDP. He clashed
frequently with anti-logging activists
and environmentalists who he believed
were destroying his members’ jobs. In
1990 he famously told a newspaper reporter “I tell my guys if
they see a spotted owl, shoot it.”
That may be extreme, but today the environmentalists are
winning the PR war of words. While we need to choose our
words carefully when dealing with our opposition and the
media, we should all share Jack’s passion and commitment.
In closing —wishing you and your families a great Christmas
and a healthy and prosperous New Year.
Hazelwood Construction busy laying a pipeline,down the hill to the
powerhouse at Carpenter Lake for BC Hydro.
News December 2013 5