Nathan VanderKlippe
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Nov 07/01) - Steelworkers have set up shop and plan to stay.

The United Steelworkers of America have been making inroads to Yellowknife in the last few years, but six months ago the Steelworkers began blitzing the city.

Kamloops-based union organizer Giles DesLauriers came in two-week cycles, speaking with existing members and drumming up new support.

He works by asking people how they like their job, then promising benefits such as increased pay, better job security and a stronger employee voice.

So far, DesLauriers said the Steelworkers have signed up 100 people at Extra Foods, 60 at the Co-op and a couple hundred who work at Yellowknife's Con Mine and Nanisivik and Polaris mines in Nunavut. The Steelworkers also represent the staff at the Union of Northern Workers.

The union has 200,000 members in Canada.

Now for the first time, the union has a permanent Yellowknife office which will be continually staffed by as many as six people. The union has also purchased an apartment to accommodate rotating staff.

"We want to make sure every Steelworker in the North gets the best service they deserve," DesLauriers said.

Apart from serving existing members, the Steelworkers are also looking for new members.

"We're going to look at every business," he said. "We don't have any specific target. But places here like Wal-Mart and Canadian Tire, it's obvious that those places with such a high turnover should be looking at the options they have to join a union."

Steelworkers members are pleased by the move.

"If we need some kind of assistance or advice we will be able to call someone who is in the office to provide us with that," said Marija Babic, president of Local 8646. "Our locals are quite independent but we still need advice we count on when it comes to the legal issues or if something is currently happening."

Other unions aren't concerned by the increased presence.

"I don't think that it's going to really affect PSAC (Public Service Alliance of Canada)," said regional representative Dolly Ablitt.

"It's always good to have a visible union presence in town," said Steve Petersen, regional vice-president of the Federation of Labour. "I'm hoping that they will go after some of the harder areas to unionize -- to places like Robinson Trucking. It gives workers that much more of a choice if they want to be unionized," Petersen said.