Speaking to his home crowd, Canadian Labour Congress President Ken Georgetti made personal and passionate appeal for unity in the labour movement, alongside his own commitment to continue working toward this end. 

Georgetti’s remarks come against a backdrop of a continuing issue between the CLC and the national union NUPGE, which has also had reverberations in BC and at this year’s convention.  Georgetti reminded delegates of the importance of unity in the labour movement and that while workers may often disagree, we need to find ways to work together in order to accomplish our shared and common goals.

Georgetti then turned his focus to pension reform. The CLC has been leading a national campaign for pension reform and has been at the forefront of building a broad coalition across the country to fight for retirees’ access to a secure living income. 

Georgetti listed the broad range of supporters for reform that span the political spectrum, from members of Alberta’s right wing government to prominent leaders within the Liberal Party, to the solid and staunch support of Canada’s New Democrats. ”Even Gordon Campbell gets it, and though I am reminded that even a stopped clock is right twice a day, but hey, even Gordon Campbell gets it,” Georgetti noted. 

Originally from Trail, BC, Georgetti served as the President of the BC Federation of Labour before his election as President of the Canadian Labour Congress in 1999. Georgetti’s daughter is a MoveUP delegate to the convention and a member of the COPE Youth Action Committee.

In his concluding remarks, Georgetti returned to the theme of unity and a plea to work together. Despite occasional disagreements, Georgetti stated, “We have a main cause and a main focus, and that is to make this movement stronger and better, and we need to roll up our collective sleeves and make this society better for us all.”