Holly Morgan, Dalhousie Member
On March 6th and 7th, I attended the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour International Women’s Day Breakfast and the CUPE NS Women’s Conference.
The breakfast, hosted in the NSGEU building in Burnside, was enjoyable and saw the distribution of the Sister and New Sister of the Year awards. The keynote speaker was a nurse who gave an inspiring talk about resilience and support in the face of her daughter’s cancer battle. She emphasized the importance of colleagues and supervisors who care about you as an individual rather than just a worker, and about how caring for her daughter impacted her approach to nursing and to union activism.
The CUPE NS women’s conference took place in the afternoon, and the Friday sessions were primarily social. We received welcome messages from many senior CUPE representatives and were then invited to participate in a blanket tying session and to paint inspirational rocks and canvases. The evening event included African drumming and Tarot readings, and it was interesting to talk to CUPE members in healthcare and elementary education about the ongoing challenges in their fields.
Saturday’s session began with coffee, and the highlight of the morning was an inspirational talk from Carol Murray, who survived a skydiving accident in 1997 and now works in corporate fundraising. She spoke at length about resilience and how strength comes from community, and she also focused extensively on workplace safety, a matter that may have prevented her accident.
In the afternoon, we were joined by Olympian Karen Furneaux, who spoke about mental health, resilience, and recovery. Karen highlighted some of the qualities needed to overcome mental health challenges, particularly in light of ongoing strains within our healthcare system. She concluded her session by guiding us through some movement and stretching.
These events serve as empowering reminders of the important roles women leaders can play in our unions, as well as of the importance or resilience in the face of adversity. They sought to empower union leaders in challenging times and fostered strong connections across CUPE and other local organizations.
Thank you for supporting my attendance!