Did you know yesterday was World Water Day – a day to step up our work defending public water and wastewater services. We can all take action in our workplaces and in our neighbourhoods. Here are a few ways:

 

Take action on bottled water in your local, workplace or community. March 19 is Bottled Water Free Day. Visit backthetap.ca for action ideas, and to take the tap water pledge.

Do you work on campus? The Coalition for Bottled Water Free Communities is doing a reality check on campuses that have announced a ban on bottled water. Check the Polaris Institute’s list to see if your campus has announced a ban. Then help us track whether administrators are living up to their word bycompleting this short survey. 

The Harper Conservatives are using infrastructure funding to force more municipalities into water and wastewater P3s. There is a better way. Learn about and share the Alternative Federal Budget. The AFB is a financial blueprint for maintaining, upgrading and expanding municipal water and wastewater services without privatization. The AFB also outlines concrete steps to ensure safe, clean drinking water in First Nation communities.

Support international efforts to fight water privatization. CUPE and other Public Services International affiliate unions are supporting thecampaign against water privatization in Peru.

 

Together we can fight privatization, and promote water as a public service and a human right. CUPE 960 is devoted to keeping water public and never uses bottled water at a meeting.

We’re having a mental health nurse come to our workplace for a lunch session. Is there a certain aspect of mental health or mental health and the workplace that you  would like to have discussed? Do you have any specific question? Ask and comment below anonymously.

The citizen's action group We Are Oshawa is urging residents to keep the
pressure on all political parties to raise the minimum wage to $14 on
International Women's Day. Women make up 57% of minimum wage workers and Premier
Wynn's proposal to raise the minimum wage to $11 will keep women 16% below the
poverty line.

“Coming from Flint, Michigan I’ve seen a low wage economy in full force,” says We Are Oshawa spokesperson Tiffany Balducci. “Women especially are hit the hardest.  Now we’re seeing it in Ontario with precarious work, temporary work, and falling wages.  The newer generations are suffering through low wages and trying to string together a few temporary jobs while paying student loan debt and attempting to start families.  This isn’t fair and this isn’t what we want for future generations.”

We Are Oshawa is encouraging residents of Oshawa to attend the International Women's Day march on Saturday, March 8th at OISE, 252 Bloor St West in Toronto.

Oshawa, ON - On Thursday, February 27 workers, activists, and community members from Durham Region met to prepare for a fight against Tim Hudak's low wage agenda and attack on the middle and working classes.  This event was attended by over 350 people in a packed Unifor 222 Hall.  CUPE 960 members were present and could feel the excitement in the room.  "Coming from Flint, Michigan I have seen first hand what right-to-work legislation does to the middle class and it's not pretty," said CUPE 960 President Tiffany Balducci.  "It becomes a race to the bottom. We're not even asking for a race to the top - we just want to protect the middle. People work hard and that should be celebrated, not downgraded." You can see footage from the event below: