From bargaining historic agreements for hotel workers in Vancouver and food service workers at the Cara Flight Kitchen in Richmond, to the renewed commitment to our union by our members working at GM Place, these are exciting times for UNITE HERE Local 40. Hotel and food service workers throughout British Columbia who belong to Local 40 are reinvigorated and are showing their employers, and each other, they have the capacity to use the UNITE HERE advantage to their benefit. It’s through their determination, commitment and understanding that they have been able to achieve significant gains so far this year and, in doing so, are continuing to raise the bar for things to come. I am proud to be part of the team that has achieved so much this year, but am always aware that everything we fight for can be quickly taken away. We cannot “let up”, and even though we have had a recent string of successes, it could not be possible without the strength and determination of each and every one of you who has stepped forward and become more involved with your union. By discussing workplace issues with your co-workers and encouraging one another to participate and stand together, we have captured an energized momentum that, with the incredible support of our International Union, UNITE HERE, can secure a future for all of us that can achieve even greater gains for our membership working in British Columbia. As a long time labour activist once told me, “We have to fight for everything we get and we have to keep fighting so we can keep it.” I believe our renewed strength in fighting comes from our ability to stick together, as we have recently seen on a number of fronts. The incredible show of strength and skill from our members who work in food service at GM Place in Vancouver was recently rewarded when they democratically voted to continue on the path to improving their workplace by remaining UNITE HERE Local 40 members. In a decisive vote, counted in October, UNITE HERE Local 40 members chose to remain members of our union, and I am very proud of the work they put into their fight-back campaign when they were faced with a raid from another union. Theirs is an incredible achievement that generated many new leaders in this workplace who took on this incredible challenge to work on behalf of their union brothers and sisters. Through their actions, they have installed a new sense of optimism and power to change for the good that is taking place at this facility. Their commitment to these challenges are a reflection of the sense of family and community at GM Place, and I know the mem-bership working at this entertainment venue now has the ability to continue to make even greater gains as we head into bargaining for a new agreement in 2008. Our hotel workers in Vancouver have also shown their strength in organizing their ability to succeed by standing together and fighting for one another. This summer we went through one of the most intensive bargaining sessions for a new collective agreement in the long history of this union, and I am very proud of the dedication to their union, and each other, our hotel workers have shown. Together we rallied, attended meetings, and stood strong against these corporate hotel employers, clearly demonstrating that when we are strong, we can go the distance and achieve great things. As a result of our intensity and willingness to stand strong for what we believe in, our Vancouver hotel workers signed an incredible and historic agreement in September. Building on that strength, we are determined to achieve similar gains for hotel workers at the Delta Vancouver Airport in Richmond, the Hilton Metrotown in Burnaby and the Holiday Inn Vancouver Centre on Broadway, as we continue to bargain with those employers. We have much more to do to ensure the continued transformation of our union reaches its ultimate goals, and together with Shelly Ervin, your Secretary-Treasurer, your union’s leadership is committed to working on your behalf and in your best interests to continue to achieve workplace improvements, better collective agreements and significant gains that will help secure your future. Together, we can be even stronger than we have recently demonstrated, and a strong UNITE HERE benefits each and every one of us working here in British Columbia. I hope you enjoy this issue of The Mixer, and take the opportunity to write me with your thoughts. | 
