UFCW local president defends training centre’s reputation amid controversy

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/02/2016 (2989 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Controversy involving one of the premier’s former top aides has splashed mud against a worthy training organization that is considered a “gem” within the union movement, its biggest champion says.

The UFCW Training Centre, with locations in Winnipeg and Brandon, has helped thousands of people obtain their Grade 12 equivalency, aided laid-off workers in finding new jobs and even taught recent immigrants how to navigate Canadian grocery stores and prepare the foods contained within them.

The centre dwelled in relative obscurity until its former director, Heather Grant-Jury, hit the news over allegations of possible financial impropriety. And that only rated a headline because Grant-Jury was seconded by an embattled Manitoba premier 15 months ago to head his political staff when five cabinet ministers resigned over his leadership.

The province has contributed more than $1 million to programs offered by the training centre since 2007, and both the UFCW and the government have assured the public that taxpayer funds were never compromised.

In an interview Thursday, Jeff Traeger, president of UFCW Local 832 and head of the separately operated training centre’s board of trustees, said the controversy has hit staff at the centre and within his local hard.

“It’s been hard on all the staff… because we are all hugely proud of the training centre and fiercely proud of the work that we’ve done there and the work that we are continuing to do there,” he said by telephone from Ottawa, where he was away on business.

The union has not specified exactly why it has parted company with Grant-Jury. The provincial NDP has also cut all ties with the former Winnipeg Labour Council leader. She has not been charged with any crime.

Traeger said the lion’s share of the cost of the training centre’s programming comes from employer contributions negotiated through collective agreements. No union dues are used to fund training, he emphasized.

Government has funded only three of its many programs: an adult ed program that helps people get their Grade 12 equivalency; a successful English as a second language program and a program that helps laid off workers brush up their skills and resumes to find new jobs.

Thousands of newcomers — foreign workers and their families — have improved their English skills through classes at UFCW training centres in the last decade. Most of the government money came from a federal government that wasn’t exactly known for being union friendly, Traeger pointed out.

“We are now the second-largest provider of English-language training for adults in Manitoba. We are the only organization in Manitoba that is certified by the federal government to teach English as an additional language to our members.”

Since 1999, the training centre has partnered with other organizations to provide a mature student Grade 12 diploma to about 1,400 Manitobans — mainly to people who aren’t members of the United Food and Commercial Workers.

Traeger recalls one graduation ceremony in which a 65-year-old woman — employed by Maple Leaf Foods in Winnipeg — graduated alongside her 27-year-old son.

“She told us when she was speaking at the microphone the reason she came to get her Grade 12 was to make sure her son came to school every day and got his too,” the union leader said.

While the training centre has taken an indirect hit in the press this week, it is viewed by its backers as a shining light that has improved the image of organized labour.

Traeger said he hopes the controversy doesn’t harm the centre.

“What I can say is that the issue that we are dealing with is an issue with one person. We have a lot of good quality people dedicated to providing education for not just our members but for the public at large,” he said.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca