Despite a province-wide protest by parents against the elimination of specialized treatment for severely autistic children, 43 therapists were issued lay-off notice Friday at Queen Alexandra Centre for Children on Vancouver Island. The therapists are members of the Health Sciences Association of BC, the union that represents 16,000 health science professionals including autism intervention specialists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech language pathologists, and social workers who work with autistic children and their families.

December 6 this year marks the 20th anniversary of the 1989 Montréal massacre of 14 young women at the École Polytechnique.

Violence against women is still pervasive, and is rooted in social inequality. HSA members working in transition houses all across BC tell us that violence against women occurs at home and at work.

Did you know?  8 million Canadian workers have no pension or RRSP savings.

Date:
Thursday, November 5

Time:
7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Location:
Justice Institute Theatre
715 McBride Boulevard
New Westminster, BC

Coffee and Refreshments will be available.

For more information call (604) 430-6766

OTTAWA ... An announcement by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty on regulations dealing with federally-regulated pensions is welcome but will have little if any immediate impact upon the pension security that Canadians are looking for, says Ken Georgetti, President of the Canadian Labour Congress.

-These changes result from consultations the government has held over the past year and some of them look good, but they dont deal with the pension crisis facing most Canadians," says Georgetti.

Moms on the Move is holding a provincial day of protest tomorrow, October 28, to remind BC Premier Gordon Campbell of his promise to build the best system of supports forchildren with special needs in Canada.

In the past several weeks, cuts to funding have been announced in a number of programs, including:

The provincial government has just announced that seasonal flu vaccine will be administered at the same time as the vaccine for H1N1.  Prior to this, the government planned to offer the seasonal vaccine only after the H1N1 vaccination program was complete.  H1N1 vaccination for high-risk groups will begin next week.
 

By James Clancy
National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE)

Ottawa - We're long overdue for serious tax reform in this country. Most Canadians agree on this. But the new unfair Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) in Ontario and BC is not what most of us had in mind.

Earlier this year the Harper government reached agreements with Ontario and BC to merge the provincial sales tax (PST) and federal goods and services tax (GST) into a single harmonized tax (HST). The new HST is an unfair tax for two key reasons.

The H1N1 vaccine has just been approved for use across Canada and the vaccination program for BC will begin shortly.
 
This approval is based upon positive results of clinical trials of the vaccine in Europe. 
 
As with any seasonal flu vaccination campaign HSA encourages members to participate.  Vaccination is an integral part of the prevention against serious health risk. 
 
Health care workers will be among the first to be offered the vaccine in BC along with:
 

HSA President Reid Johnson will join concerned families at a rally to save services for children in Kelowna Sunday, Oct. 18.

Date: Sunday, October 18
Time: 11 a.m.
Place: Kerry Park (The Sails) Downtown Kelowna

For information about how to get involved, contact bcautism@gmail.com

Labour Relations Board rules USW pickets cant block workers or patients

Members of United Steel Workers (Local 2009) are fighting for a fair collective agreement with Compass Canada. The members are amongst the lowest paid workers in the health sector, and are fighting for equality with other workers doing the same work.

In September, the Labour Relations Board ruled that Compass workers could, if necessary, put up limited pickets at facilities in the Fraser Health Authority.