Monday, August 26, 2024
Dear Brother Mark, Sister Candace, and the CUPE National Executive Board,
The CUPE 3902 Executive Committee urges CUPE’s National Executive Board (NEB) to reconsider their motion calling for Fred Hahn’s resignation as General Vice-President. We see the NEB’s move as motivated by Fred Hahn’s outspoken support for Palestine during the Israeli state’s ongoing genocide in Gaza, and amid an ongoing campaign to pressure such voices into silence. Furthermore, we see that this motion is undemocratic, encroaches on Local autonomy (something CUPE and its members pride themselves on) and circumvents existing protocols in our National Constitution to address concerns raised about member conduct at any level of office.
During the most recent CUPE National Convention in October 2023, the membership voted democratically to, as a national union, “conduct member education about the history of Israel’s occupation and colonization of Palestine, Canada’s complicity, and what trade unions can do to support a just peace.” This decision aligns with decades-long labour organizing to connect workers’ struggles globally and practice solidarity through worker-led action. CUPE National’s recent decision to pressure Fred Hahn to resign puts a chill on worker solidarity with Palestine in an already hostile and repressive political climate.
In line with our union values, the CUPE 3902 Executive Committee asserts that freedom struggles everywhere are workers’ struggles, and therefore integral to the strength of the labour movement.
We reaffirm our local’s long-standing solidarity with the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation and apartheid. Finally, we reiterate our call for the CUPE National Executive Board to reconsider their politically-motivated motion regarding Fred Hahn’s resignation, and to respect the member-led democratic processes that are fundamental to our union.
In solidarity,
CUPE 3902 Executive Committee