COPE 378 members

Standing up for our members—our most important priorityCOPE 378 Secretary-Treasurer’s ReportAchieving a strong financial position is an importantgoal for a union. Financial strength is directlyrelated to our most important priority—standingup for our members.There was a time inlabour history that standingup for members meantlong strikes and militant jobaction. While the ultimatestrength for unions remainsin their willingness to withdrawlabour, more and more,our fights involve workingtogether with other unions,Lori Mayhew,COPE 378 Secretary-Treasurercommunity groups and thepublic.Political action and workplacecampaigns have become an important tool inour efforts to support members. Political action is thesame unity of purpose applied to the greater communityas Labour solidarity has been in the workplace.Of course, as a union, our first duty is to representour members. We also strive to counter the impact ofpolitical decisions and obtain the best possible workingconditions, benefits and wages for the membership.The 2005 Financial Report for COPE 378 is a snapshotof our financial picture. But behind the numbersand pie charts, is a story, many stories in fact, aboutthe services and positive actions we take on behalf ofour members. Through political action or job action,through collective bargaining and handling grievances,that is our role and responsibility as your union.We also play a role in ensuring our members havesound benefit and pension plans. Many COPE 378members have pension benefits in their collectiveagreements and in our recent member survey, over 80percent thought we did a good job at getting membersdecent pensions.COPE 378’s strong financial position will serve uswell as we work together over the coming year. Butto remain strong, we must look to the future and opportunitiesfor growth. COPE President Andy Ross haspresented three goals for 2006 that will keep us strongand focused on our most important priorities.The goals are outlined in the article, “President’sWord”, found in the June edition of Local Voice. Thethree goals are:• Strengthening our bargaining power: Collectivebargaining is the lifeblood of the union movement andcontinues to be the central function of COPE 378.• Organizing new workplaces: Start by addressingbarriers to achieving first collective agreements suchas having adequate financial support for new membersin the event of job action.• Political Action: Building support for our positions sowe can defend the rights and interests of our members.Thank you for taking the time to read our 2005Financial Report. We welcome your comments andquestions on the report or on other issues. You canreach us at editor@cope378.ca.I hope you enjoy the summer and take quality timeto spend with your family and friends.Lori MayhewSecretary-Treasurer, COPE 378Did you know COPE 378 has aPension Committee?The COPE 378 Pension Committee is comprised of pension Trusteesand Advisors from COPE 378 bargaining units. The mandateof the committee is to:• Be a resource on pension matters for COPE 378.• Communicate general and bargaining unit specific pensioninformation and issues to COPE 378 members.• Provide pension related education courses and information toCOPE 378 members.The COPE 378 Pension Committee invites members’ suggestionsor questions on pension issues. Specific plan information shouldbe directed to your Plan’s administrator. If you are unsure who thisis, please contact us. The committee can be reached by e-mail ateditor@cope378.ca.COPE 378 bargaining units have various forms of pension plans.Some have defined contribution plans and some have definedbenefit plans. The following is a summary of the plans in our bargainingunits. If your bargaining unit is not listed here, then eitherthere is no pension plan, or we are unaware of it.Defined BenefitJointly Trusteed Plans with Company & COPE 378 Trustees:• Fortis BC • Terasen • ICBC • Southern RailCompany Trusteed Plans with COPE 378 advisors:• BC Hydro • BC Transmission Company • Accenture BusinessServices • Canadian Northern Shield • BCAADefined Contribution• Working Enterprises InsurancePublic Service Pension Plan• BC Transit (Victoria) • BCGEU • Coast Mountain BusCompany • TransLink • ICBCMunicipal Employees Pension Plan• Capilano CollegePage cope 378 FINANCIAL REPORT 2006