2026 CUPE NS Convention
Lachlan Sheldrick
SECTOR COUNCIL DISCUSSIONS
There was a scheduled meeting to discuss the creation of a CUPE NS sector council for post-secondary education. There has been discussion of forming such a council with local 4491 (SMU tradespeople), local 3131 (CBU support staff), and local 4198 (Acadia tradespeople). Currently, the primary obstacle is that these locals are not affiliated with CUPE NS. However, discussions are ongoing about forming greater relationships across the sector in Nova Scotia.
RESOLUTIONS
Local 3912 had a resolution on the floor of convention to expand the eligibility of the strike fund. This is not something that is within CUPE NS’s power, and so the motion simply required that CUPE NS support efforts at national convention to make changes to the definition of a strike, including the requirement for lost wages during the time of the strike. The need for these changes comes from the precarious and seasonal nature of our work, where many members do not have an active contract at the time of a strike, and so cannot receive strike pay, even when serving on an executive or strike committee.
Ultimately this resolution did not pass, however productive conversations were had with Candace Rennick, the national secretary treasurer, about how best to pursue these initiatives at the national level.
ELECTIONS
During the course of convention, executive board elections were all uncontested and resulted in acclimation of the current executives to continue serving in their positions.
Committee elections proceeded and resulted in multiple 3912 members getting elected to committee positions. Delegates Holly Hanes and Tian Liao were both elected to committee positions. Delegate MJ Jackson expressed interest in applying for the open position on the CUPE Atlantic Maritime Region Indigenous Council.
Congratulations to all of our 3912 delegates for their elections and their involvement in the broader work of the union!
LONG TERM CARE
The then-ongoing long term care strike overshadowed much of convention. The number of delegates were significantly reduced due to many of the usual candidates being out on the picket line instead. Donations to the long term care committee and support fund were made.
Delegates participated in a rally at the Halifax Convention Centre. The rally was well attended and showed immense solidarity with the striking LTC workers. The rally disrupted Premier Tim Houston’s state of the province address, a goal that was accomplished through chanting and loud music, and which was successful. Later that day, a cabinet shuffle was announced.
The last day of convention was punctuated by the announcement that the province had returned to the bargaining table and that the LTC bargaining committee would be returning to negotiations.
ADVOCACY
Throughout the convention, I worked on strengthening our connections to and building solidarity with other sectors and locals within CUPE. On this front I was broadly successful, particularly with the education sector. Discussions about how to build solidarity, and discussions about the need to support expanding the strike fund’s eligibility were had, and there is definitely support for the initiative in this sector. Furthermore, conversations about how 3912 can best support education workers in k-12 as they move into bargaining in the near future were productive.
Likewise, connections and solidarity with acute care and healthcare sector workers were built. This initiative to build broader solidarity is ongoing.
In Solidarity,
Lachlan Sheldrick
President, Local 3912