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Strike
averted
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by Rosalind Raby
ESPANOLA --- The Manitoulin-Sudbury
District Social Services Administration Board (DSSAB) is continuing
with business as usual after narrowly averting strike action
by its unionized staff. CUPE Local 4705 President Wyman MacKinnon
said a tentative deal was reached late Friday afternoon, October
12, 2001 following two day of negotiation at an undisclosed
location in Sudbury. He represents some thirty workers who are
located in offices in Alban, Hagar, Chapleau, Manitoulin Island
and the head office in Espanola. Mr. MacKinnon said it has been
difficult to get a first time contract. "We were certified nearly
two years ago and had been unsuccessful in reaching a first
time contract. We met with a mediator in early spring and those
talks failed to bring about a deal. I will not go into the specifics
of what we were asking for, but there was a wide range of issues;
wages, benefits, holidays, car allowances and even the grievance
language to be used. We made an initial offer, focussing on
a financial basis, but the board did not accept it," explained
Mr. MacKinnon. Shortly thereafter, 95 per cent of the membership
voted in favour of setting a strike mandate, with all members
taking part in the vote. A strike deadline of midnight, Friday,
October 12, 2001 was set two weeks ago. Reaching the deal avoided
the set up of picket lines Saturday morning. Mr. MacKinnon said
both sides are recommending signing the deal. "I can tell you
a tentative deal has been reached and both sides are recommending
acceptance. None of the details are being released at this time
till both sides ratify the deal. This is a first time deal and
it was a very difficult round of collective bargaining. The
negotiators, representing the employer, certainly did not do
anything to enhance labour relations. We will be doing everything
humanly possible on our side to make this deal work," said Mr.
MacKinnon. Asked if he was being critical of the deal, MacKinnon
said no. "It is a pretty good deal but there are still a lot
of labour relations issues to work on. This employer is not
used to administering a labour contract. This is a first time
deal for them too. Personally, I think we will see a positive
outlook and everyone will be relatively happy with the outcome,"
added Mr. MacKinnon. If the deal is ratified, it will mean changes
within the union itself. Mr. MacKinnon said union stewards will
be established at all the satellite offices as well as the head
office in Espanola. "The appointment/nomination of the union
stewards is made following ratification of a contract. This
will ensure there are local representatives to help staff deal
with any problems through the life of the contract," concluded
Mr. MacKinnon. The members will vote on the deal on Monday,
October 22, 2001. DSSAB Chief Administration Officer Gary Champagne,
who represented the members of the board at the negotiating
table, said he is optimistic the board ratification will follow.
"The board will be meeting on Thursday, October 25, 2001. Although
I can not comment on the details of the contract, I can tell
you negotiations are never easy. I'm especially pleased there
is no strike. I would like to believe with both sides at the
negotiation table unanimously voting to approve the deal, the
package will be ratified by both sides fairly quickly and the
business of the DSSAB will carry on. With both sides recommending
acceptance, I am fairly optimistic," said Mr. Champagne. The
board is made up of 14 appointed members representing both organized
and unorganized municipalities within the Manitoulin and Sudbury
Districts, with the exception of the Greater City of Sudbury.
Mr. Champagne added they will not have to go back to their individual
councils for ratification of the contract, since they are the
duly elected representatives and can approve the package at
the regular meeting of the board on October 25, 2001.
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Province
announces major changes to Northern Health Travel Grants
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by Michael Erskine
TORONTO---A petition of the provincial government
by thousands of Manitoulin Island residents and people across
the North, finally paid a dividend last week when the province
announced enhancements to the Northern Health Travel Grant program,
effective November 1, 2001. Health and Long-Term Care Minister
Tony Clement and Dan Newman, Minister of Northern Development
and Mines announced the changes on October 11 in North Bay.
"The improvements made to the Northern Health Travel Grant program
exemplify our government's continued commitment to provide quality
health care to every person in Ontario," said Mr. Clement. The
enhancements increase the Health Travel Grant from the previous
level of 30.4 cents per kilometer, one way, under the old formula
to 34.25 cents per kilometer, both ways, with a 100 km deductible.
"That means that if you have to travel 100 kilometers, or 200
kilometers round trip to see a medical specialist, you will
be paid for 100 kilometers times 34.25 cents," said John Leatherby,
media representative with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term
Care. "It will help to ensure that people have access to the
highest possible quality of health care, no matter where they
live in the province." Although the government move was lauded
as a 'good first step' by nearly everyone involved in Northern
Health Care, most government critics were quick to point out
that the changes still did not cover all of the costs of medical
travel or completely address inequities between North and South.
"It is a good day for Northern Ontario," said Health Travel
Grant advocate Gerry Lougheed Jr. of Sudbury. "It could be better,
but who wants to rain on a good news story. The bottom line
is that we commend the government for increasing the grant by
double. The fact that the announcement was made in part by the
Minister for Northern Development and Mines certainly validates
the importance of this issue for Northern Ontario." Mr. Lougheed
and Sudbury MPP Rick Bartolucci co-founded Ontarians Seeking
Equal Cancer Care (OSECC) and they have been lobbying the government
for improvements to the Northern Travel Health Grant program
for two years. "There is still a double standard," said Algoma
Manitoulin MPP Mike Brown, referring to the fact that southern
Ontario patients traveling North for treatment have all expenses
paid, including meals, transportation and hotels if they are
sent out of their area for treatment, while Northerners get
only a portion of their travel costs reimbursed. The province
has maintained that the southern subsidy was a temporary program
which was designed to simply fill in the gaps in specialized
medical services in southern Ontario, and as such has since
ended, while the Northern program is a long-term program which
recognizes a situation which is unlikely to change significantly
over the long-term and which has now been enhanced. On June
14, 2001 the Ontario Ombudsman issued a statement concluding
the government's practice of under-funding Northern Cancer patients
was "improperly discriminatory." The New Democratic Party (NDP)
leader Howard Hampton has committed his party to fight for retroactive
reimbursement of medical expenses incurred by Northerners seeking
treatment in the south. Mr. Hampton also noted that the provincial
government has repeatedly refused to release a government study
titled, 'Patient Travel Assistance Programs in Ontario,' despite
a Freedom of Information Act request by MPP Shelly Martel, the
NDP health critic. The provincial government cited Cabinet confidentiality
and privilege in its refusal to release the report, arguing
that the report had to remain under wraps while the Cabinet
debated its contents. The report has been in Cabinet hands for
over a year. The health needs of Northerners encompass more
than just the need for a travel subsidy when seeing specialists
maintains Mr. Brown. "I am hoping this is just the beginning,"
said Mr. Brown. "We still have to address the issue of family
doctor shortages. Some of my constituents have had to find their
family doctors in Sudbury or Sault Ste. Marie because the doctors
in their communities can't handle any more patients. Why should
they not get some help with travel costs also?" The provincial
government has said that the Northern Health Travel Grant is
one of the most generous of its kind in Canada. "Our government
recognizes the unique needs of residents in the North," said
Mr. Newman. "The enhanced Northern Travel Grant will help ensure
northerners can access the quality health care they deserve."
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Book
launch
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by Diana Smith
WIKWEMIKONG---An official book launch
was held at Wasse-Abin High School for Larry Leblanc's historical
novel, "The Power of Alliance", on October 5. Originally from
North Bay, Mr. Leblanc has lived on Manitoulin Island for over
30 years. He came to work for the Department of Indian Affairs
after having taught in a Jesuit Mission on the Rose Bud Reserve
in South Dakota. Over the years he has worked in Wikwemikong
as a teacher, counselor, principal, superintendent, sports coach
and writer. "One of the reasons I wrote the book is because
there is very little native oriented materials in our schools,"
he commented. "even in the native schools." Mr. Leblanc feels
his book tells an untold history because it is one of the first
times that the Three Fires Confederacy; the Ojibwe, Odawa-Ottawa,
and Potawatomi have been put together in one piece of work in
terms of their alliance for war and survival. The fire was the
spiritual symbol of this family alliance. Hollywood has made
the Lakota (Sioux) and Cheyenne of the South Dakota Territory
(Plains Indians) seem to be the fiercest of the tribes, winning
all the battles, but in reality it was the Three Fires people,
who in the long run were the more powerful of the group. They
were the largest group in North America, holding the largest
land mass. The story is set between 1615 and 1662 and illustrates
success comes to these three tribes when they join forces, whether
in war, overcoming starvation, or for protection. Disability
after two open-heart surgeries would not allow Mr. Leblanc to
stand and teach in the classroom for any length of time. "The
Wikwemikong Band's Board of Education were very kind to me and
for the last two years of my tenure they put me on a historical
research project, with the idea of adding it to school curriculum,"
he said. He and his research assistant, Carol Peltier, traveled
to many places gathering the information they would need for
an account of Anishnabe History. Many archives, libraries, historical
societies, and other informational locations were visited throughout
Ontario and the United States. Locally, some of the diaries
of former priests were accessed from Jesuit archives. "My assistant
and I got the most help from over 47 elders on Manitoulin, 30
of those from Wikwemikong, who passed on oral histories, Mr.
Leblanc explained. "These were most helpful setting us off in
proper directions to locate other materials." The body of work
that was gathered over the years is now located in the Wasse-Abin
High School's Library in Wikwemikong. From this study and research,
the author started creating a historical novel, dating back
to the 1800s. As he worked on this, another idea came about
and he switched to a earlier story date in the 1600s. The original
novel is still in progress. The time of the story line in, "The
Power of Alliance" is used because it is the first proven contact
with the village of Wikwemikong before migrations occurred.
The plot then follows these migrations Mr. Leblanc says, "The
non-native characters in the novel are all documented names
from the past as are a few of the native characters. The bulk
of native characters are composites from history, to give the
reader a general feel for the day to day life of the person
being portrayed." Chief Gladys Wakegijig said at the book launch,
"it is an honour and privilege to witness the celebration, and
to be given to opportunity to acknowledge all the hard work
and dedication that was put forward in creating this book."
Sara Peltier, Director of Education for the Wikwemikong Reserve,
complimented Mr. Leblanc on the long hours of hard work in gathering
all the documents, and putting it into a readable format for
"our children to read and understand." She also was grateful
for Carol Peltier who came back to her community to help in
the research of the original documentation. Ms. Peltier said
she feels that the researcher, through working with Mr. Leblanc,
has more knowledge of treaties, documents, and Wikwemikong history
than any other community member does. She concluded that for
success in this big wide world it is necessary for the First
Nations children to be bi-cultural. She felt it was an important
first step for the children to have a solid knowledge of themselves
and their own history. Mr. Leblanc commented that in his research
for the school board he found hundred and hundreds of incidences
in local history that would make good material for other books.
He said, "It is a rich history, an interesting history that
has largely been ignored. To quote Chief Dan George, "A man
who doesn't know his history is like a man without a memory."
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