03) RYAN ACCLAIMED AS OFL SUPPORTS AUSTERITY FIGHT

 

PV Ontario Bureau

 

            President Sid Ryan, Secretary Treasurer Nancy Hutchison and Executive Member Irwin Nanda were all acclaimed on Nov. 25 as officers of the Ontario Federation of Labour.

 

            In a barn-burner of a convention opening speech, Ryan told delegates that the OFL had to move its members and community allies in the Common Front into mass action to fight austerity and defend labour's hard-won gains. Promising more of the militant struggles the OFL has been engaged in since his election in 2009, Ryan had the support of the largest section of delegates in the hall.

 

            Two contenders for President dropped out after a struggle that took place in the OFL leading up to the convention.

 

            Fed up with demonstrations and under pressure from the NDP caucus to settle it down, the right wing in the OFL leadership was out to dump Ryan with a surprise challenge, expecting a low turnout from cash‑strapped affiliates.

 

            A staffer from UFCW, Bob Lynton, was set to go when the coalition backing him realized they didn't have the votes to defeat Ryan. A visit from Hutchison the night before the convention began was said to be the reason why a USW candidate from Sault Ste. Marie stepped down, though he was running only to prevent Ryan's acclamation.

 

            It was clear from the get‑go that delegates support Ryan, and the militant direction he is leading the OFL. The challenges would have been a defeat for the right if they had played out as initially planned.

 

            As PV went to press on Nov. 26, the Convention was preparing to deal with the Action Plan. Also on the agenda are constitutional amendments which aim to curb the power of the President and the elected leadership, with the creation of an unelected executive body comprised of three public sector unions, three private sector unions, two equity vice presidents and the table officers. Being sold as a body with an advisory function only, which could act to smooth out sharp differences in the leadership, the amendment is a dangerous step away from membership control of the OFL.

 

            The Canadian Labour Congress was restructured in this way at its last convention, and is being touted as a model for the constitutional change. The CLC is also virtually invisible in the struggle against austerity in Canada today.

 

            People's Voice will report on the convention decisions on this and other resolutions in our January issue.

(The above article is from the December 1-31, 2013, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)