TORONTO, Sept. 14 /CNW/ - Employees at Ming Pao, one of Toronto's largest Chinese-language newspapers, voted to unionize today under the CEP Local 87M media union.
About 150 employees at Ming Pao will now be represented by the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union, joining two other Toronto, Chinese-language, newspapers already organized under Local 87M -- Sing Tao and World Journal.
"This was a high profile organizing drive in Toronto's Chinese community because of the prominence of the publication and the fact that the employees put their faith in Canadian constitutional and labour law rights to campaign openly," said Brad Honywill, president of CEP Local 87M. "Now, the employees can begin the process of electing a bargaining committee, developing contract proposals and meeting management to forge a first contract."
The successful vote culminated a three-week open campaign for the union, generated by the desire for improved wages, benefits, working conditions and, in a word, respect, Honywill said.
CEP is one of Canada's largest private-sector unions, representing about 150,000 members in media, telecommunications, energy, paper, forestry and construction.
CEP Local 87M, also known as the Southern Ontario Newsmedia Guild (SONG), represents more than 3,000 members in 35 workplaces, including the Toronto Star, Globe and Mail, NOW Magazine, Toronto Sun, Waterloo Record, Hamilton Spectator, London Free Press, ATV-London, the House of Commons and the Ottawa Citizen.
For further information: see www.song.on.ca or contact: Brad Honywill, Cell: 905-334-9259, Office: 416-461-2461, ext 7
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