The march to the unemployment lines will start up for employees of Chrysler, Kodak and The Source, as the three companies begin some restructuring plans that will see Canadian workers looking for alternate options in the near future.
Chrysler Canada has announced that 20% of its labour force will be eliminated as many as 2,000 employees, all part of the larger plan to eliminate 10,000 jobs North America wide as the auto maker joins the North American parade of job reductions in the auto sector.
A cycle that has seen all three major North American companies eliminate jobs as record losses skyrocket. Chrysler is rather late to the party, having watched both GM and Ford make their announcements in 2006 in one of the largest retrenchments in the auto industry in recent years.
The announcement seems to have left the CAW’s Buzz Hargrove in a bit of shock, Chrysler had been used as kind of a spotlight of success for North America of late, to have them jump into the same wading pool as GM and Ford doesn’t bode well for the membership. Hargrove suggested that these kinds of reductions will be a common thing unless the North American car makers are given access to world markets that currently keep the continent’s cars out of their home turf.
Photography giant (well perhaps former giant is proper) Kodak announced further layoffs of 3,000 employees, a rather remarkable feat considering in the last three years the company has eliminated some 27,000 jobs as the move from film to digital took hold. Any more staff reductions at Kodak and they’ll be able to have their world headquarters in one of those abandoned Fotomat kiosks of the days gone by.
And the final addition to the Wednesday jobs sweeps, saw another large scale job sacking announced, this one by The Source by Circuit City which provided few details on their plans to close 62 under performing stores across Canada. Hard numbers of soon to be ex employees were not available, each operation is different and staffing levels can range from two to fifteen employees depending on the market.
The announcement was made with the optimistic sounding headline of “Circuit City Stores, Inc. Announces Changes to Improve Financial Performance”, which may be true, but certainly not if you’re collecting a paycheque from the company.
No details were announced as to which stores across Canada were scheduled to be closed, so time will tell if the Prince Rupert operation will be spared from the downsizing plans.
Showing posts with label Unemployment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Unemployment. Show all posts
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Monday, October 30, 2006
The east-west divide of Northern BC
The EI system in the northern part of the province once again finds itself under the microscope, with a hot economy in the east and a lukewarm if not outright cold on in the west. The system is in need of an overhaul according to the local MP Nathan Cullen, who calls on the federal government to take a longer look at the current crisis in the area.
Suggesting that the reporting area be divided into Northwest and Northeast sections, Cullen feels that once that technical matter is acted upon, the Northwest will gain better access to job retraining funding.
He also touched on the second reading of the anti replacement worker bill currently working its way through the House of Commons, though his comparison of the House of Commons, to a “house of Pastry” as reported in the final paragraph of the story kind of leaves you wondering what it is that he’s trying to get across. Unless of course he’s comparing MP’s to apple turnovers, cream puffs or possibly hot cross buns, which might work, we guess.
The Daily News had the details in its Friday edition
CULLEN CALLING FOR EI REGION TO BE SPLIT
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, October 27, 2006
Pages one and two
Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen is looking at shorter term solutions to fix the Employment Insurance (EI) system in northern B. C. while a bill to overhaul the system works its way through the House of Commons.
“We are trying to work on a specific measure right now to separate the region. The region as it’s designed right now, goes from the Queen Charlotte Islands all the way to For St. John, with obviously a huge stretch of economies. We want the federal government to split the region into a ‘northwest’ and ‘northeast’, much the way the federal ridings are,” said Cullen. “We are also looking for serious training dollars from EI and Western Economic Diversification in Prince Rupert and this riding area.”
Currently, shore workers in Prince Rupert are having trouble accessing EI because of the failure of the pink salmon run this summer and the fact that the EI region includes the booming economies of Fort St. John and Prince George.
Last weekend, shoreworkers held a rally, barbecue and letter writing campaign at Fishermen’s Hall to try and keep their spirits up.
Cullen said he doesn’t know yet where the best boundary split would be but its clear things can’t stay the dame.
“We have to talk with some communities and people who follow the employment numbers to see what the natural fit is (to split the region.) The federal boundaries might make sense, they might not,” he said.
“I think the main point is to get the federal government to understand you can’t mix apples and oranges and have one program that fits both of them and that’s what we have.”
“When Rupert is doing as well as Fort St. John, then we can talk, but it hasn’t been that way for a long time and it shows how out of touch the program is with the reality on the ground.”
In the meantime, Cullen said he was pleased a second reading of what he called an “anti-scab” bill was passed Wednesday evening in the House of Commons.
Bill C-257 is the third legislative attempt to outlaw the use of replacement workers at the federal level.
“The bill got through and it came through resoundingly. It exists in B. C. and Quebec already and we are looking to make it happen right across the country. It has been shown to lower labour disputes’ intensity and length,” said Cullen.
He said amending the Canada Labour Code to ban replacement workers during disputes will help bring balance, fairness and economic stability to the workplace and the country.
“Labour disputes are also prolonged, making strikes and lockouts even more costly to the Canadian economy in the short term an, as a result, lingering animosity can infect workplaces for years.”
Cullen said that removing the ability to use replacement workers results in smoother labour relations and shorter labour disputes with less risk to everyone involved.
“Watching the labour movement come on the hill and get second reading of the anti-scab bill really showed the House of Commons has the potential to return back to a House of Commons, as opposed to a house of pastry, and listen to average working folks." he said.
Suggesting that the reporting area be divided into Northwest and Northeast sections, Cullen feels that once that technical matter is acted upon, the Northwest will gain better access to job retraining funding.
He also touched on the second reading of the anti replacement worker bill currently working its way through the House of Commons, though his comparison of the House of Commons, to a “house of Pastry” as reported in the final paragraph of the story kind of leaves you wondering what it is that he’s trying to get across. Unless of course he’s comparing MP’s to apple turnovers, cream puffs or possibly hot cross buns, which might work, we guess.
The Daily News had the details in its Friday edition
CULLEN CALLING FOR EI REGION TO BE SPLIT
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, October 27, 2006
Pages one and two
Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen is looking at shorter term solutions to fix the Employment Insurance (EI) system in northern B. C. while a bill to overhaul the system works its way through the House of Commons.
“We are trying to work on a specific measure right now to separate the region. The region as it’s designed right now, goes from the Queen Charlotte Islands all the way to For St. John, with obviously a huge stretch of economies. We want the federal government to split the region into a ‘northwest’ and ‘northeast’, much the way the federal ridings are,” said Cullen. “We are also looking for serious training dollars from EI and Western Economic Diversification in Prince Rupert and this riding area.”
Currently, shore workers in Prince Rupert are having trouble accessing EI because of the failure of the pink salmon run this summer and the fact that the EI region includes the booming economies of Fort St. John and Prince George.
Last weekend, shoreworkers held a rally, barbecue and letter writing campaign at Fishermen’s Hall to try and keep their spirits up.
Cullen said he doesn’t know yet where the best boundary split would be but its clear things can’t stay the dame.
“We have to talk with some communities and people who follow the employment numbers to see what the natural fit is (to split the region.) The federal boundaries might make sense, they might not,” he said.
“I think the main point is to get the federal government to understand you can’t mix apples and oranges and have one program that fits both of them and that’s what we have.”
“When Rupert is doing as well as Fort St. John, then we can talk, but it hasn’t been that way for a long time and it shows how out of touch the program is with the reality on the ground.”
In the meantime, Cullen said he was pleased a second reading of what he called an “anti-scab” bill was passed Wednesday evening in the House of Commons.
Bill C-257 is the third legislative attempt to outlaw the use of replacement workers at the federal level.
“The bill got through and it came through resoundingly. It exists in B. C. and Quebec already and we are looking to make it happen right across the country. It has been shown to lower labour disputes’ intensity and length,” said Cullen.
He said amending the Canada Labour Code to ban replacement workers during disputes will help bring balance, fairness and economic stability to the workplace and the country.
“Labour disputes are also prolonged, making strikes and lockouts even more costly to the Canadian economy in the short term an, as a result, lingering animosity can infect workplaces for years.”
Cullen said that removing the ability to use replacement workers results in smoother labour relations and shorter labour disputes with less risk to everyone involved.
“Watching the labour movement come on the hill and get second reading of the anti-scab bill really showed the House of Commons has the potential to return back to a House of Commons, as opposed to a house of pastry, and listen to average working folks." he said.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Cullen looks for a little compassion from the bureaucracy
The MP for Skeena, Nathan Cullen is hoping to find a little humanity among the “bean counters” of Ottawa, a project which seems rather daunting, considering that your average Ottawa bureaucrat has about as much compassion as Belinda Stronach on a date. You have a much better chance of hearing a good song on a local radio station, than having a bureaucrat move that rock an inch
The cause that Cullen and other like minded MP’s in Ottawa are seeking, is some compassion and some changes, when it comes to the EI regulations and its impact on North coast shoreworkers and fishermen.
In fact the government even commissioned a report on the issue (something that Bureaucrats are rather passionate about), Restoring Financial Governance and Accessibility in the Employment Insurance Program. Which if the the average citizen had the money could be purchased for a mere $26, it no doubt makes for some fine reading while you sit around the house wondering if you can scrape enough hours together to qualify for the topic at hand!
If you like that one, you can pick up the sequel Restoring financial governance and accessibility in the Employment Insurance Program. Part I , it retails at $19 from your local government retailer.
We can't wait for the movie options and the inevitible television mini-series! Teeming masses, well fed bureaucrats, earnest politicians my we can sense an epic when we see one!
Perhaps a few less reports and a lot more action might go a long way to resolving the situation.
The issue has been brought to the full boil with the lackluster fishing season of the past summer and the impact that is going to have on shoreworkers and fishermen, who came up short of qualifying for Employment Insurance.
With not enough hours worked over the course of the year and a local employment situation that is still rather shaky, the local fish industry workers are looking at a time on Social Assistance to get by over the winter. Something that will bring home in full the crisis that seems to occur over and over again in the local fishing industry of late.
The Daily News had a full report on Cullen’s attempts in their Monday edition.
MP CULLEN CALLING FOR HUMANITY FROM ‘BEAN COUNTERS’
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Monday, October 2, 2006
Page One
The bean counters in Ottawa are showing little humanity when it comes to regulations surrounding Employment Insurance (EI) and its impact on the West Coast fishermen and shoreworkers, said Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen.
And the Conservative government is dragging its heels when it comes to getting involved.
“We are fighting on this one in Ottawa really hard right now. We were able through the committee process last year to get recommendations that would specifically help out the fishing industry on the West Coast and East Coast as well. Conservatives were part of that committee and endorsed those recommendations,” said Cullen.
“Now that they are in power, they have thrown a few bones out to Quebec but the minister keeps asking for more time to do more studies. It’s absolutely ridiculous.”
With next to no pink salmon available for either catching or processing seine fishermen and shoreworkers are not only having an extremely poor season, but most will not have worked enough hours to qualify for EI this winter.
EI qualifying hours are based on the unemployment rate throughout the local region, which stretches from the Queen Charlotte Islands to Alberta and from the Yukon to Quesnel.
The area includes the booming economies of Prince George (which is harvesting a glut of pine beetle wood) and the northeastern part of the province (which has a booming oil industry.)
However, the committee Cullen is talking about – the Federal Parliament’s Sub-Committee on Employment Insurance – tabled a report called Restoring Financial Governance and Accessibility in the Employment Insurance Program back in February of 2005. The report recommended that EI regions be split into smaller areas and that job prospect programs be more quickly implemented, so workers can learn new skills while working at jobs that are EI insurable.
If implemented, this would help fishermen and shoreworkers.
“The Conservatives crossed over the floor and became government and started acting like a bunch of Liberals when it comes to EI, putting in further and further restrictions and making it less humane. That’s the struggle I have. There is little humanity in the decision these bureaucrats in Ottawa make. They are just counting up the beans and not really thinking about the human impact,” he said. Cullen said he is working with people in Prince Rupert to come up with a plan that addresses the short term problems as well as making long-term changes, so the same thing doesn’t happen every year.
“Anyone with any basic knowledge of Northern British Columbia knows that a Prince Rupert or a Masset is nothing right now like say a Fort St. John. You would have to be pretty thick to lump all these regions together when calculating what kind of support families need.”
Cullen will also be making a submission to the minister for relief.
The cause that Cullen and other like minded MP’s in Ottawa are seeking, is some compassion and some changes, when it comes to the EI regulations and its impact on North coast shoreworkers and fishermen.
In fact the government even commissioned a report on the issue (something that Bureaucrats are rather passionate about), Restoring Financial Governance and Accessibility in the Employment Insurance Program. Which if the the average citizen had the money could be purchased for a mere $26, it no doubt makes for some fine reading while you sit around the house wondering if you can scrape enough hours together to qualify for the topic at hand!
If you like that one, you can pick up the sequel Restoring financial governance and accessibility in the Employment Insurance Program. Part I , it retails at $19 from your local government retailer.
We can't wait for the movie options and the inevitible television mini-series! Teeming masses, well fed bureaucrats, earnest politicians my we can sense an epic when we see one!
Perhaps a few less reports and a lot more action might go a long way to resolving the situation.
The issue has been brought to the full boil with the lackluster fishing season of the past summer and the impact that is going to have on shoreworkers and fishermen, who came up short of qualifying for Employment Insurance.
With not enough hours worked over the course of the year and a local employment situation that is still rather shaky, the local fish industry workers are looking at a time on Social Assistance to get by over the winter. Something that will bring home in full the crisis that seems to occur over and over again in the local fishing industry of late.
The Daily News had a full report on Cullen’s attempts in their Monday edition.
MP CULLEN CALLING FOR HUMANITY FROM ‘BEAN COUNTERS’
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Monday, October 2, 2006
Page One
The bean counters in Ottawa are showing little humanity when it comes to regulations surrounding Employment Insurance (EI) and its impact on the West Coast fishermen and shoreworkers, said Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen.
And the Conservative government is dragging its heels when it comes to getting involved.
“We are fighting on this one in Ottawa really hard right now. We were able through the committee process last year to get recommendations that would specifically help out the fishing industry on the West Coast and East Coast as well. Conservatives were part of that committee and endorsed those recommendations,” said Cullen.
“Now that they are in power, they have thrown a few bones out to Quebec but the minister keeps asking for more time to do more studies. It’s absolutely ridiculous.”
With next to no pink salmon available for either catching or processing seine fishermen and shoreworkers are not only having an extremely poor season, but most will not have worked enough hours to qualify for EI this winter.
EI qualifying hours are based on the unemployment rate throughout the local region, which stretches from the Queen Charlotte Islands to Alberta and from the Yukon to Quesnel.
The area includes the booming economies of Prince George (which is harvesting a glut of pine beetle wood) and the northeastern part of the province (which has a booming oil industry.)
However, the committee Cullen is talking about – the Federal Parliament’s Sub-Committee on Employment Insurance – tabled a report called Restoring Financial Governance and Accessibility in the Employment Insurance Program back in February of 2005. The report recommended that EI regions be split into smaller areas and that job prospect programs be more quickly implemented, so workers can learn new skills while working at jobs that are EI insurable.
If implemented, this would help fishermen and shoreworkers.
“The Conservatives crossed over the floor and became government and started acting like a bunch of Liberals when it comes to EI, putting in further and further restrictions and making it less humane. That’s the struggle I have. There is little humanity in the decision these bureaucrats in Ottawa make. They are just counting up the beans and not really thinking about the human impact,” he said. Cullen said he is working with people in Prince Rupert to come up with a plan that addresses the short term problems as well as making long-term changes, so the same thing doesn’t happen every year.
“Anyone with any basic knowledge of Northern British Columbia knows that a Prince Rupert or a Masset is nothing right now like say a Fort St. John. You would have to be pretty thick to lump all these regions together when calculating what kind of support families need.”
Cullen will also be making a submission to the minister for relief.
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