Labour councils gearing up for local government elections

REPORT MAGAZINE, SEPTEMBER 2017

BY CAROL RIVIERE, HSA COMMUNICATIONS

Choosing the politicians who govern our communities at the municipal or regional district level, and the school trustees who make decisions that affect our children's education, is a critical issue for working families.

Over the next few months, several communities around the province will hold by-elections to fill vacant positions, and in the fall of 2018 there will be local government elections around the province.

Labour councils work with local politicians on an ongoing basis on a range of issues affecting our communities. In the lead-up to local government elections, labour councils work to identify candidates who share the values of working families and who want to make a difference on municipal councils, school boards and regional district boards.

In deciding whether or not to endorse a candidate, labour councils consider the candidate's position on a range of issues important to working families, as reflected in such things as the voting record of incumbents, the candidate's responses to a labour council questionnaire and, in many cases, an interview with labour council delegates from several different unions. HSA will be letting members know which candidates their local labour council has endorsed, so that you can consider this when deciding how to cast your ballot.

HSA is affiliated with local labour councils around the province, through our membership in the Canadian Labour Congress. HSA members serve as delegates to many of BC's labour councils and are involved in their labour council's candidate endorsement process.

This is just one of many reasons why HSA encourages members to become delegates to your local labour council. Chapters will be nominating labour council delegates during HSA steward elections this fall. If you're interested in becoming a delegate, then please contact your chief steward, or Carol Riviere at @email.

And if you're running or working in a local government by-election this fall, or thinking of doing so in the province-wide local government elections next year, then contact Carol Riviere for information about the support that HSA may be able to provide to assist you in this work.