SFL PARTNERS WITH PROVINCE

The Government of Saskatchewan and the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour (SFL) signed a landmark partnership agreement today that will help remove barriers to employment for Aboriginal people.

Under the provincial Aboriginal Employment Development Program (AEDP), the partnership agreement will have a significant impact on Aboriginal participation in the workforce because it involves all unions and union processes and policies in the province. The goal is to make collective agreements more inclusive of Aboriginal people in hiring practices, which will in turn encourage Aboriginal people to compete for unionized jobs.

"The program stems from our commitment to remove barriers to employment for Aboriginal people," Premier Lorne Calvert said. "As a result of the AEDP, more than 1,700 Aboriginal people have been hired and over 4,000 people have received cultural awareness education. Our goal is to achieve a representative workforce for the overall social and economic benefit of the province."

"The Saskatchewan Federation of Labour is committed to building a representative workforce in Saskatchewan. We want to ensure that all citizens have the opportunity to find decent and meaningful employment and a better quality of life," SFL President Larry Hubich said. "We are signing and committing ourselves to this partnership and we will encourage all unions who have not signed partnerships to do so in the near future. What we ask for ourselves, we demand for others. Access to work means access to equality."

The SFL represents over 85,000 members, from 32 national and international unions, and their affiliate memberships belong to over 700 locals throughout the province. In supporting the principles of social unionism, the SFL strives for the social and economic justice for all.

The Saskatchewan Government, through the AEDP, strives to build a representative workforce in Saskatchewan where Aboriginal people compete for jobs based on their skills and qualifications, and where they have representation at all occupational levels in proportion to their population numbers in the province.

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For More Information, Contact:

Anna Arneson Government Relations and Aboriginal Affairs Regina Phone: (306)787-8008