February 14 , 2017  

Calendar highlights for February 13 to 17:
  • staff rep Lawrence Maier was on the road Monday to meet with a GSU member
  • staff rep Dale Markling met with GSU Local 5 (Western Producer) members on Monday
  • Dale Markling is rescheduling a February 14 meeting with Discovery Co-op management
  • the Tuesday Members' Memo is emailed to GSU members weekly on Tuesday. If you know a co-worker who hasn't received the TMM and would like to, they can call GSU toll-free 1.866.522.6686 or send an email request to gsu.regina@sasktel.net.
  • general secretary Hugh Wagner will meet with a member on Thursday  
Upcoming events:

GSU Education Forum
March 7 & 8, 2017 ~ Ramada Hotel, Regina, SK
The focus of the forum will be on identifying and filing grievances, the rights of shop stewards and local representatives, representing your co-workers effectively, and being a local leader.
Contact your GSU staff rep to learn more. 

60th Annual SFL /CLC Spring School
April 3 to 7, 2017 ~ Temple Gardens Hotel & Spa, Moose Jaw, SK
Learn more about the school and read the course outline here.

SFL Young Workers' Conference & Youth Action Summit
April 28 & 29, 2017 ~ Ramada Hotel, Regina, SK
Learn more about the conference and summit  here.

Contact your GSU staff rep for more information about these events, GSU's expense policy, or to register. 

GSU's calendar of events is regularly updated and available on GSU's web page - www.gsu.ca.  

What to do if you're about to be investigated or disciplined by your employer
 
I f you are called into an investigation meeting by your employer you should ask if this could result in discipline. If the answer is yes, you have the right to have a union representative present. 
 
If you request to be accompanied by a union representative and the employer refuses to grant your request, they do so at the risk of jeopardizing the integrity of their investigation. 
 
The benefit of having a union representative present during an investigative meeting or a disciplinary meeting is that the employee has an advocate and a witness present. 

"There have been many times when the employee has said something and the employer has taken it out of context or the wrong way," said GSU staff rep Dale Markling. " Having a union representative present tends to lead a reduction in tension and create a more civil atmosphere. Employees report they have found meetings with a union representative present to be much more about fact finding and much less of an inquisition."

If you have questions or you think you might require union representation, contact your GSU staff rep. Your inquiry is confidential and there is no additional charge for having a staff rep attend a meeting with you. 


SaskTel sale proceeds may only eliminate a quarter of the province's operating debt, says author 

As Saskatchewan's $1.2 billion provincial deficit soars, the government is talking about possible wage freezes and job cuts for public-sector workers. 

There are also whispers about selling SaskTel. Legislation proposed by the Saskatchewan Party last autumn would allow the government to sell up to 49 per cent of a company without it being considered privatization.

Author  Simon Enoch has  evaluated the desirability of privatization and whether Saskatchewan would fare better under a privately-owned or publicly-owned telecom.

  
 

 Bargaining updates and reports are also available on GSU's web page -  www.gsu.ca.

 
Discovery Co-op

Union and company representatives have agreed to meet with conciliator Kevin Eckert on March 3 in North Battleford. 

Background information on bargaining in this local are available on GSU's web page at www.gsu.ca.

GSU's Local 17 bargaining committee members are  Shelbi Prescesky, Glen Morrison, and GSU staff rep Dale Markling.   

 

The worst passwords of 2016

Major data breeches in 2016 exposed log-in information and passwords for millions of people. A number of companies made the best of a bad situation by evaluating the passwords and compiling lists of the most commonly used - and worst - passwords leaked over the internet in 2016. 

Tied for top honour for a sixth straight year on Splash Data's worst password list are the passwords "password" and "123456". Fellow contenders "passw0rd" and "password1" ranked slightly lower at numbers 18 and 25, respectively, and Star Wars received two nods with "solo" and "princess" cracking the top 15 at numbers 13 and 9. 

Don't make a hacker's job easy. 

Make sure your passwords are secure by using a variety of numbers, symbols, and upper- and lower-case letters. Make it a point to update your passwords regularly and use unique passwords for each site to decrease the chance of having multiple accounts hacked or your identity stolen. 

Check out 25 of the worst passwords for 2016 and learn more about how to keep your on-line identify safe:  Worst passwords of 2016.

This article has been printed for entertainment purposes. The views and opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those of GSU, its members, officers, or staff.

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