Unifor Local 780G is the result of a recent merger that brought together long established Locals in BC and Alberta. Our Local president, brother Alex Charles, is the full-time officer of the local based out of Vancouver, while our executive vice-president, Ray Wade is the full-time officer out of Edmonton.
Our History
Our Union is the largest union in several key sectors of Canada’s economy, including forestry, energy, telecommuni- cations and media. Our Union has 300,000 members who live and work in small rural communities, and in large urban centres, from St John’s, Newfoundland to Victoria, BC. They work in pulp and paper mills, telephone companies, mines, energy centres, sawmills, newspapers, printing shops, chemical plants, school boards, construction, software companies and credit unions. They are oil and gas workers, radio and television broad- casters, computer programers, health workers, journalists, and truckers. Unifor members work at a wide range of occupations in almost every industry in Canada.
Our National Union is the result of several mergers of unions to form the large and very influential Unifor. The head office is loccated in Ontario and our current elected national president is Jerry Dias. The national president and vice-presidents are elected by the membership at large.
Closer to home, the Western Regional office is located in New Westminster, BC. The National Convention occurs every two years at a time and place established by the National Executive Board. Convention delegate entitlement is determined by the size of the local.
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Our Leadership
The executive board that oversees the business of the local consists of the president, executive vice-president, three vice-presidents, recording secretary, treasurer and several board members representing various regions and branches of the trade.
Your Local Union Executive Board members are:
Alex Charles, President – Unifor Local 780G
Ray Wade, Executive Vice-President – Unifor Local 780G
Ed Geppert, Recording Secretary
Brenda Mason, Treasurer – Queen’s Printer
Chris Forrester, Vice-President – Transcontinental Vancouver
Tony Lopes, Vice-President – Unifor Local 780G
Tindale Doctor, Vice-President – Transcontinental Edmonton
Representatives at large:
Alex Flostrand – Westkey Graphics Ltd.
Peter Etmannski – Nanaimo Daily News
Randy Springnatic – Transcontinental Vancouver
Steve Berg – Transcontinental Vancouver
Rachel Frawley – Queen’s Printer
Local elections occur every three years, with the next due in 2016. See the local by-laws for more information.
The local also employs a staff representative – brother Tony Lopes – who, under the direction of the president, takes care of the business of representing the members. Your right to confidentiality in your dealings with the union will be respected at all times.
Shop Stewards
The steward is always your first contact for questions about your workplace. If you do not know who your steward is (in some of the larger shops you may not meet them right away depending on your shift schedule) ask one of your co-workers, or call the union office to find out.
Your steward will be able to inform you about your employer and your collective agreement. Any question that your steward is not comfortable with answering will be referred to the staff for a definitive response. As in the case of the union staff, your steward will be sensitive to the need for confidentiality, and can be trusted to trespect your privacy.
Union Staff
The local office has an administrative staff of one, Brother Bill Husband, who is a member of the Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union, Local 378. Bill is available during office hours to answer many of the commonly asked questions. The office is open weekdays between 9:00 am and 4:30 pm (3:30 pm Fridays).