REFINERY STACHE FOR CASH CAPTAIN

Hello Mo Bro’s and Mo Sista’s,

I want to extend my deepest gratitude to CRC and Unifor 594 for their generous support and donations towards our Movember efforts last year. Your contributions are making a real difference, and I couldn’t be more thankful.

For those who may not be familiar, Movember is an annual campaign dedicated to raising awareness and funds for men’s health, particularly focusing on mental health, suicide prevention, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer. By growing moustaches and encouraging conversations, Movember is all about changing the face of men’s health—literally and figuratively.



This year marks my 15th year participating in Movember, and I’m thrilled to share that I’m approaching a lifetime total of $40,000 raised for this incredible cause. Every year, I am humbled by the new and longtime supporters who join me on this journey. Together, we’re changing lives, and the impact is measurable.

Highlights from 2023; We had 35 sign-up to support, with 279 team donations and with the help of the CRC’s donation match, raised $43,638! We placed 33rd out of 3000 teams for the highest fundraising organization in Canada and 5th in Canada’s Oil Rig Rumble Challenge.

Last year, our amazing team ‘Refinery Stache for Cash’ raised over $43,000, and with your help, I’m confident we can go even further in 2024. I’m excited to welcome new supporters and build an even larger team this year to push our fundraising efforts to new heights. With more voices, more moustaches, and more heart, we can make an even bigger difference. You can provide support in many different ways including the “fun way” of signing up to ‘Grow a Mo’, ‘host a Mo-ment’, ‘Move for Movember’ or ‘Mo your own way’; all of which can be found on the Movember website, https://ca.movember.com. Of course, you can also make a simple donation to our team by searching “Refinery Stache for Cash” on the Movember website.



Thank you once again for your generosity, support, and commitment. Together, we’re contributing to a better, healthier future for men everywhere.

Looking forward to another amazing Movember!

Mo love, Mo on. Let’s do this!

Mike Neigum

306-550-4416

Mike.n@sasktel.net

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Law Committee

Many members of 594, both new and long-term, are looking for ways to become more active and involved with union activities. There are many opportunities to become informed and active within our union, which begins with attending monthly meetings, having conversations with senior members and leaders of the membership, and potentially joining a union committee. 

Who and What is the Law Committee

The law committee is very near and dear to me as that is how I got my start with the union executive and was the basis for learning and expanding into my role as Chief Shop Steward. In our local bylaws the president, with the approval of the local executive, will appoint up to 8 members to serve on the committee with the Chief Shop Steward acting as the chair. 

What do we do? We strive to hold quarterly committee meetings where we get together to discuss and research relevant legal issues and cases that may affect current concerns occurring within our membership. Through legal resources, such as CanLII or WestLaw, the committee members will search relevant case law to provide insight into current grievances, potential grievances, company policies and procedures, etc. Committee members will also research union files to gain information on relevant bargaining notes, grievance settlements and agreements made with the company that may not be in the CBA. The knowledge gained and shared through this process is extremely valuable for the grievance committee to guide decisions regarding grievances. Lawyers are a great resource but are very costly, do not readily have access to Union files, and are not always available when we need information promptly. That's where the Law Committee comes in to bridge that gap. Some recent issues where the Law Committee's assistance has been crucial were the MO ULP, contracting out grievances, contracting in grievances, opinions on policies, and too many more to list here.

The law committee is not just about grievances and doing research all day. Members of the committee are involved in updating policies and union forms, researching other unions' contracts and policies, and creating and updating union training. Some current projects that committee members are involved in include a revamp of the grievance info sheet (which will include a digital version), updating and revising the current shop steward training course with the goal to have a two-day course ready for 2025, and digitizing historical CBAs and grievances.

I would like to acknowledge and thank the current members of the Law Committee; Sheena Rivett, Nic Skulski, Tammy Mooney, Matt Wason, and Richard Exner. It has been quite common for myself or former chair Richard to put out a question or a concern, that is timely in nature, on the committee chat and receive information that is crucial to the decision-making process. Your commitment and efforts do not go unnoticed and the value you bring to 594 is vital to the executive and the membership.

If anyone would like to know more about the Law Committee or has an interest in potentially joining please reach out to me and we will have a chat.

In solidarity,

Kurt Haakensen

Chief Shop Steward