BC Federation of Labour Rolls Out New Campaign

From www.earnbc.ca

BRITISH COLUMBIA/CKNW(AM980)

6/6/2010

The BC Federation of Labour has launched an educational initiative aimed at informing workers of their basic workplace rights.It is called ‘EARN’ and stands for Employee Action and Rights Network.

BC Fed President Jim Sinclair says it’s an online resource to provide answers, and info on how to organize, “The majority of people don’t know their basic rights on the job. The Liberal Government did shut down the program where employers had to at least post a sign which gave out the basic rights you had as an employee at the work site. The liberals brought in legislation that killed that. Now, most people don’t know.”

That change came with an overhaul of the Employment Standards Act in the early days of the Campbell Government.

He says many workers are surprised to learn simple things like – that their employer has to cover the cost of a dine and dash, or employees are entitled to two hours of pay for attending staff meetings on their days off.

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No to NATO, Yes to Peace!

In the framework of the coming Summit of NATO to be held in Lisbon, Portugal, in November, 2010, the World Federation of Democratic Youth extends its support to the peace-loving forces in Portugal.We particularly salute the actions of our member organization, the Portuguese Communist Youth (JCP), of the Portuguese National Preparatory Committee for the 17th WFYS, and all organizations that, side by side with these abovementioned two, are part of the campaign “Yes to Peace, no to NATO!”

As the last 60 years have proved, NATO is since its foundation, one of the most killing instruments of imperialism and has always played a role of oppressing the struggling people, whether by support to fascist coup d’etats, colonialist domination and military intervention or direct attack.
Among many other examples, mankind
can’t ever forget how on 1999 NATO was the instrument for the bombing of Serbia, bringing war back to Europe to conclude the dismantle of Yugoslavia, a country that lived in peace and prosperity for decades and whose only “mistake” was not to accept the imperialist imposition to abandon its policy of sovereignty.

In the preparations for this summit of November already several voices of imperialist powers have raised their voice to announce the deepening of NATO global aggressive character, as to widen the justifications for NATO interventions and confirm it as the “policeman” of imperialism that can intervene at anytime and anywhere.

This fact, goes side by side with the growing military investment and commitment of the European Union and USA to NATO, as their tool to protect and deepen the imperialist domination over all countries of the world, present in Afghanistan with an increasing military contingent and having as main future target Iran.

We stand side by side with the Portuguese youth and people, whose country remains attached to this hideous structure following a commitment made by the Portuguese fascist state 61 years ago. The dissolution of NATO is, therefore, a demand of the current times, part of the achievements of the Portuguese people with the overthrow of the fascist regime and a clear of guideline of the national constitution of the country even nowadays.

In the road for the 17th World Festival of Youth and Students, in South Africa in 2010, the struggle of the youth against NATO and for peace is a major aspect of the preparations of the Festival and it will also be one of the most significant topics in discussion.

WFDY fully supports and endorses the Portuguese campaign “Yes to Peace, no to NATO!”which unites dozens of movements and organizations. We call upon all peace loving organizations to unite our voices and meet in November 2010 in Lisbon under the appeal of the above mentioned campaign.

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Stop the tortures to the Cuban Five – Freedom Now!

The World Federation of Democratic Youth has received with worry and indignation the news regarding the physical and psychological that Gerardo Hernandez Nordelo, one of the five Cuban Heroes unfairly arrested in the USA, has been suffering.As the the National Assembly of the Popular Power of Cuba has expressed, once again the imperialist government of the USA is showing the world its terrorist politics towards the Cuban Revolution and its hypocrisy by maintaining unfairly imprisoned five Cuban youngsters that struggled against terrorism, and even promotes that Luis Posada Carriles and Orlando Bosh, two of the biggest criminals of Latin America and the world, walk freely through the streets of Miami.

On behalf of its member and friend organizations, WFDY vehemently condemns these actions of physical torture and psychological terrorism against Gerardo Hernandez Nordelo, and demands once again to the USA government the immediate release of the Cuban Five Heroes, icons to the world youth, as examples of struggle against terrorism and imperialism. We call upon all our members, friends and all the progressive youth of the world to express its rejection of this inhuman action and to multiply our voices to demand the liberation and keep supporting the glorious Cuban revolution - still blocked and harassed by the North American Government with the support of the European Union.

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