Response to Mr. Dick's letter in 19 Nov edition of the Citizen.
Unions DO NOT tell their members who to vote for. They do however, let the membership know who the labour candidates are and urge everyone to get out and vote. Concerning your issue with union dues being spent on campaigns; all union members should attend their monthly meetings, as motions for donations various causes are made and voted on. Obviously, if you are not interested in attending then you have no recourse when your dues money is spend on issues you do not believe in.
Please know that CUPE is not the only union in Prince George that is active during all elections. BCGEU, HEU, IBEW, Steelworkers, PPWC, CEP, the nurses union are all mandated to provide education, leadership, representation and guidance. As a retired union member, I often look to my union for information regarding local issues.
Lastly, you say unions have no business in politics but then who should we let run in the elections? Do we live in a democracy or not, do we have freedom of speech or not? If you wanted to put your name on the roster, should we let you? Of course the answer is yes to all questions. Belonging to a union does not take away your freedom of choice, they just make available information for you to make an informed choice.
Susan Fowler
Prince George
