As 2007 winds down, things couldn’t be busier at Local 40. With ongoing contract negotiations at three major hotel properties in the lower mainland, your union is determined to bargain more first class agreements for unionized hotel, airport and food service workers in British Columbia. A new era has begun at UNITE HERE Local 40, with a stronger membership and impressive financial stability that will help secure a more prosperous future for our membership. We are just at the beginning of where we want to be, and together with your firm commitment to continuing on this path, we can only grow and succeed further from this point on. It’s been a whirlwind of activity since I took office in June of 2006. Together with our strong Executive Board, that effectively represents our membership across British Columbia, we have begun the change that is necessary to move Local 40 into first place as the union representing hotel, airport and food service workers in this province. This has been a monumental task to date, and at this point, we can begin to reflect on some of our accomplishments over the past 18 months. These include bargaining historic agreements for our members working in the HIR group of hotels, Coast Master, at the Cara Flight Kitchen bargaining table, at the downtown corporate hotels, and our organizing success at GM Place. Although we have started to create a template for future success for our membership, we need to continue to refine and improve our strength in bargaining, organizing and political and community action. Our members deserve to have top of the line agreements and the best working conditions in the industries we work in. With the world’s focus turning to Vancouver, and hopefully the rest of the province, with the 2010 Olympic Games on the horizon, it will be Local 40 members who will be the ones on the front lines, providing first-class service and being the ambassadors of BC who will help make sure visitors to this province have an experience they will remember. Our future success will need to keep this in mind. 2007 will be remembered most as the beginning of the era of UNITE HERE Local 40 Members RISING! Let me be perfectly clear, your union has accepted the challenge of change and as a result, we have seen recent significant victories for our membership in collective bargaining, political action, connecting with our communities and securing better futures. We will continue to stand strong against employers who refuse to acknowledge the hard work of our members and the challenges they face with living in one of the most expensive areas in Canada. We are determined to pool our resources and the collective strength of our membership to ensure our members are treated fairly and with respect, and their new contracts will confirm this. Current bargaining at the Delta Vancouver Airport Hotel in Richmond and at the Holiday Inn Vancouver Centre is proving to be very difficult. The employers at these two properties have made it very clear they don’t think their employees deserve the same settlement that the downtown Vancouver corporate hotel workers recently achieved. In fact, they think their employees should work harder and for less money in their pockets. Your bargaining committees at these two hotel properties do not agree, and neither do I. Bargaining at the Hilton Vancouver Metrotown in Burnaby is progressing. Our community partners from the labour movement and other socially progressive organizations are showing their support for the workers at the Hilton and we are confident that we will be able to bring our members up to wage parity with the other corporate hotels in the area as we also seek to achieve similar wage increases as the downtown Vancouver hotels. The bargaining committee at the Hilton is strong and committed and I congratulate all the members who are currently in bargaining at all three hotels for being focused and taking the time to participate. Many thanks to Brothers Anand Singh and Virgilio Aran for their expertise and support working with the bargaining committees and membership at these hotels. Your union’s calendar for next year is already getting full. We have contract talks that will be taking place by our members employed by Aramark at GM Place in Vancouver, where our members have become very active and are consistently achieving success with resolving difficult issues in this workplace. Many thanks to the dedicated union members at GM Place who are working hard to bring additional workplace gains to their union brothers and sisters. It is an ongoing battle with this employer and I am confident we will continue to strengthen our membership at this entertainment venue. A number of our smaller properties will also be heading into negotiations in 2008 and we will you keep you updated as they progress. Internally in Local 40, I have taken steps within our union’s structure, in consultation with Local 40’s Secretary-Treasurer, Shelly Ervin, and the Executive Board, to streamline our focus and improve our ability to be a stronger organization that will continue to achieve gains and benefits for our members. We have now developed specific hotel and food service (including airport) divisions within our union, with the goal of being better able to strengthen our performance as a strong, united and focused organization. One of our major short term goals is to target significant growth of our union membership as we continue to develop our organizing capabilities. Experienced staff from our International Union, Sister Laura Moye and Brother Robert Demand, have been brought in to assist us in achieving these goals and I am confident that we will continue on the path of transformation to improve the working lives of our membership. In closing, I would like to acknowledge the hard work of our union’s support staff this year in making sure our member’s issues are handled effectively and in a timely manner. I would also like to thank Sister Linda Goossen for more than 32 years of service to the membership, most of it as the office receptionist. Best wishes in your retirement Linda! As the holiday season is now upon us, I’d like to take this opportunity to extend my best wishes to each and every one of you, to enjoy time with your family and wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Please remember to take time for yourself during this busy season and, as always, I am available if you need to discuss any union issues or concerns you may have. | 
