Space is still available in the non-partisan election campaign school HSA is holding for members interested in working on election campaigns or running for political office.  The school will focus on the May 12, 2009 provincial election, and will be the only campaign school HSA offers before this election.

If you want to help elect representatives who will support public health care and community social services, or are considering running for elected office some day, then HSAs election campaign school is for you!

1. REGIONAL DIRECTOR ELECTIONS

A reminder that Regions 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 are holding elections for Regional Director.  All HSA members in these regions are encouraged to put their names forward for nomination.

The Vancouver & District Labour Council Education Committee
and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives present a public forum and conference on the economic crisis in BC.

The public forum, Economics for Everyone, will be held Friday Jan. 30 from 7 - 9 p.m. at the Maritime Labour Centre, 1880 Triumph Street, Vancouver.

Featured speaker is Jim Stanford, Canadian Auto Workers' economist and author of Economics for Everyone.

The latest issue of the NUPGE Equality and Human rights newsletter is now available at http://www.nupge.ca/taxonomy/term/22

This year, as many of you will know, the Health Sciences Association of BC is developing a Strategic Plan.  We are seeking input from a wide range of people to inform this task, and some of you may have already participated in focus groups and other processes.  We are now inviting all members to participate in a short online survey.

To access the online survey, you must register as a user on the HSA website. Register as a user here.

As Prime Minister Stephen Harper prepares to meet with Canada's first ministers this week to discuss the economic downturn and the next federal budget, a new Nanos Research poll suggests Canadians want a stimulus package that invests in public services at the top of the federal agenda.
 
Commissioned by the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE), the poll asked Canadians about their attitudes on:

To help facilitate HSA chapter meetings dealing with resolutions for HSA's annual convention, HSA has posted a draft report of action taken on resolutions passed at the 2008 convention.

The draft "Business Arising" document is available on the HSA website at www.hsabc.org

"Business Arising" documents from previous conventions, as well as minutes from those conventions are also available on the HSA website under the "News" section, "Annual Reports."

In the wake of rising unemployment numbers across the country, the B.C. Federation of Labour is calling on the federal government to focus on economic stimulus measures which will protect and create Canadian jobs, assist unemployed workers and protect pension plans.

There is still room available in the following three-day Steward Training workshops and two-day OH&S Steward Training workshops.  All stewards who have not had HSA training, or stewards who wish to have a refresher course are encouraged to apply.  Please register as soon as possible if you are interested in attending any of these workshops.

Steward Training:

• January 26, 27, 28, 2009
• February 23, 24, 25, 2009
• March 9, 10, 11, 2009

OH&S Steward Training:

Ottawa (7 Jan. 2009) - The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) is calling for a one-year national stimulus plan to create 407,000 jobs, boost the economy by 3% and shield Canadians from the worst of the global recession.

As part of its annual Alternative Federal Budget (AFB) to be made public later in January, the centre released advance proposals Tuesday to stimulate the economy in the face of what is now often described as the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s.