Reports emerged today of another large union merger, this time between the United Steel Workers (USW) and the Telecommunications Workers Union (TWU). The two unions announced the news in a media release Aug. 29, two days before the Unifor convention in Toronto where the Canadian Auto Workers Union (CAW) and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP) will join together to form the largest industrial union in Canada.
The proposed merger will see 225,000 members of the USW join with over 13,000 members of TWU, which represents workers from several telecommunications companies, including Telus Communications.
Lee Riggs, TWU National President, expressed surprise that the news was just making its way through social media networks today. “We’ve actually been talking about merger with the Steelworkers for well over a year,” he said. “This was an actual motion that was passed at our most convention back in May to open up discussions officially … to start the merger negotiation process.”
Unlike the Unifor merger where CAW and CEP are joining to create a new union, TWU will retain its current identity and become the largest local of USW in Canada. “We’d be like the telecommunications arm of the Steelworkers,” said Riggs.
For USW, whose membership now spans a number of fields including oil, manufacturing education and communications, TWU brings added expertise to their union. “It’s going to assist us … to make sure our members are served well,” said Ken Neumann, USW National Director.
While Unifor also represents telecommunications workers, Neumann was not concerned about competing with the other mega-union. “There’s always been competition,” he said, pointing out that USW and CAW/CEP already share workers in several industries. His primary concern is that labour movement continues to grow.
The merger comes on the heels of frequent reports that Verizon Wireless may enter the Canadian cell phone market. “Numbers count,” explained Riggs. “When you have 250,000 members contacting Stephen Harper letting him know that we’re not happy about this unfair entrance into Canada by an American company we think it’s a lot louder than having 13,000 people send a message.”
The size and international scope of USW also mirrors the massive international operations of multi-national corporations. Neumann explained that their international connections allow them to better advocate for workers as business moves around the globe.
Before both unions can go ahead with their proposal, TWU National Executive Council will review the merger agreement in September, followed by a member vote in October. Riggs expects that they will have the results in mid-November, “We think we’ve got a really good agreement here that is going to be a big benefit for our members and for the members of the Steelworkers,” said Riggs. USW members will not be voting on the proposal.
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