Labour movement gains ground on council

Saturday's election was a clean sweep for the city council candidates endorsed by the labour movement.

The North Central Labour Council backed mayoral candidate Lyn Hall and six council hopefuls - Frank Everitt, Garth Frizzell, Murry Krause, Jillian Merrick, Terri McConnachie and Brian Skakun - prior to the first advance voting day.

The 2014 election was something the group took seriously and began preparing for as early as January, said Janet Bigelow, president of Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) local 1048 representing the city's inside workers. Bigelow is also a regional vice president with the provincial CUPE branch.

"I think everyone realized how important it was to get out and get involved," Bigelow said. "We have an opportunity. We used to every three years, now it's going to be four years, so it's even more important that we make sure that we choose the right leaders to go forward."

A committee was formed within the labour council to make endorsements for the Prince George, School District 57, Quesnel, Williams Lake, Fort St. James, McBride and Hudson's Hope elections.

According to comments posted by the NCLC on its Facebook page, candidates had to apply to the council to be considered for endorsement. Those who applied went through a questionnaire and interview process.

"Once North Central Labour Council endorsed the candidates, CUPE agreed with the same candidates and so we let our members know that these are the ones we feel will help Prince George the most in a positive way," Bigelow said. CUPE locals throughout the city were informed via phone call and door-knocking campaigns as well as a CUPE BC-sponsored mailout.

The recommendations were just that, Bigelow said.

"No one is told that they have to vote for these people," she said. "But these are people that we recommend that we feel that they're the ones who are going to better manage Prince George in the future."

Earlier in the month, CUPE BC issued a community elections guide, asking members to consider candidates' stances on the issues of a strong local economy, education, strong public services and quality of life.

The guide also featured a case study zeroing in on Prince George, titled "What can happen when we're not active."

"In the last local election in Prince George progressive candidates lost by fewer votes than there are CUPE members living in the city," the booklet said. "One of the results was the election of a right-wing mayor and council that made a number of expensive and wrong-headed decisions that made Prince George worse, not better."

But it was the involvement of the entire city, not just unions, that drove Saturday's result, said Bigelow.

"I think it was the residents of Prince George who were not happy with some of the actions of some of the councillors - and they were held accountable," Bigelow said. "The residents of Prince George spoke and that includes union members and non-union members."