The Public Service Alliance of Canada was back in court November 17-18 to appeal the previous Conservative government’s Bill C-10, the Expenditure Restraint Act. Adopted in 2009, it rolled back negotiated wage rates for federal public sector workers.

November 20 is the Trans Day of Remembrance. On this day, we commemorate the transgender and transsexual people we have lost and honour those who continue to suffer from violence, hatred and discrimination in our communities and in our workplaces.

PSAC re-commits to fighting for trans human rights, both at the bargaining table and on the political stage.

The best line of the Trudeau government’s first day— widely reported and praised in the international media—was the new PM’s.  In response to a reporter’s question about why he’d chosen to create a gender-parity cabinet, he rather matter of factly observed “because it’s 2015”.  This ostensibly simple statement summed up a complexity of attitudes, beliefs and even world views in three words.

The new minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Minister Hunter Tootoo, was mandated by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a letter released Friday to re-open the Kitsilano Coast Guard station and the Maritime Rescue Sub-Centre in St. John’s.

“This is a major victory for all who have been campaigning against the closures by the previous Conservative government,” said PSAC National President Robyn Benson. "We are optimistic that Minister Tootoo will act swiftly for the sake of water, harbor and environmental safety.”