National Day of Mourning

National Day of Mourning

Hello CUPE 4070 Members,

On April 28th of each year, the National Day of Mourning is a chance for us to remember and reflect on those that have been hurt or have died on the job. Roughly 1000 workers a year in Canada lose their lives, and we as your Heath & Safety Committee Members believe this is too high and strive everyday to prevent this number from increasing.

Our goal is to support our Members with increased awareness, better legislation, and the resources necessary to keep us safe.

The Role of Health and Safety Committees

Employers across Canada must provide a healthy and safe workplace. Employers are legally obligated to collaborate with workers on health and safety committees to highlight issues and find safe solutions.

Health and safety committees are where we explore solutions to workplace health and safety issues and make recommendations to employers. Our voices are important. We know the day-to-day realities of our work, beyond what’s written in employer policies. We have rights – we need to use them.

Let’s build capacity, document workplace hazards, keep careful records, and demand that workers be protected from hazards we can’t remove. It’s not enough to acknowledge danger, it must be addressed. When an employer fails to uphold their duty of care, we must take the next steps with government inspectors.

Brief history on National Day of Mourning

In 1984, the Canadian Labour Congress established April 28th as the National Day of Mourning in Canada to remember and honour those who have died, been injured or suffered illness in the workplace.
The date was chosen in 1984, when the Canadian Labour Congress proclaimed the Day to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the day the first Ontario Worker's Compensation Act was approved by the government (1914).

The Day of Mourning was enshrined in national legislation by an Act of Parliament on February 1, 1991.
The Day of Mourning, also known as Workers' Memorial Day, is officially recognized in about 100 countries worldwide.
For more information on National day of mourning please visit https://cupe.ca/ event/workers-day-mourning .

Your CUPE 4070 Health & Safety Committee,
WestJet - ws.ohs@cupe4070.ca
WestJet Encore - wr.ohs@cupe4070.ca
Swoop - wo.ohs@cupe4070.c

On behalf of your Local 4070 Executives:

CUPE 4070 President, Alia Hussain
CUPE 4070 Vice President, Charles Brochu
CUPE 4070 Recording Secretary, Calvin Gautschi
CUPE 4070 Secretary-Treasurer, Alex Grigoriev

Swoop Base VP, Sherrie Moore
WestJet Encore YYC Base VP, Adrian Dayrit
WestJet YEG/YVR Base VP, Chris Brewer
WestJet YYC Base VP, Brandy Whitby
WestJet YYZ Base VP, Bryan Hansraj