However, Wall told reporters Friday that a Sask. Party government would "reach out" to labour. "We want them to join in the Enterprise Saskatchewan model," Wall said.In yet another example of how the Sask Party is reaching out to labour, officials listed only as "two high-ranking government bureaucrats" have pulled out of a public labour forum. Of course, they've done this on the day the forum is to take place, and after confirming their attendance.
(Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Oct. 27, 2007)
This is no different from the antics of the Sask Party during the election, when candidates ducked public debates in Regina and Moose Jaw. So although it shouldn't be surprising to anyone that the Sask Party is still pulling this bullshit, it's very disappointing that ducking public forums, public debates, and stakeholder consultations is how little Bradly Wall intends to honour his committment to "reach out".
The labour forum is still going to take place, even without government representation. Anyone interested in labour issues or how Bills 5 and 6 will affect the current labour climate should definitely be in attendance. The stronger labour's presence is, the less government can continue its tactic of avoidance and indifference.
3 comments:
Reaching out... like with a Taser?
The Sask. Party would be nuts to attend the forum and experience a clearly partisan kangaroo court. NDP labour legislation and Conservative labour legislation are not the same and never will be. Each Party is entitled to legislate as per its own ideology. Get used to it!!
I agree, Anonymous, that any government officials would have a tough row to hoe at one of these forums, so I can't really blame them for not showing up. But you reap what you sow: rolling into power and coming after labour with guns blazing will certainly elicit a similar response. And the way labour and the SFL have been treated by the Sask Party after Wall's assertion that he's going to be "reaching out" has been deplorable.
So is this what government means to you, Anonymous? Labour's philosophy differs from the Sask Party's so that gives Wall and Co. the right to treat them like shit? Ditto with the citizens of Prince Albert? Ditto with Station 20? Because, y'know, call me old fashioned, but I've always believed in a responsible goverment, the kind who may disagree with certain segments of the population, but nonetheless had to address their needs. Or at least listen to them.
Just because Wall is Premier, that doesn't give him carte blanche to go and do whatever the hell he wants. But he clearly thinks it does: he's disrespected the office, he's let his under-age daughter drive on public roads, he's cancelled promised funding to various agencies who had started done work based on the expected funds, he's reached into previous years' budgets and stolen funding, he's torn up agreements, he's ignored labour, he's even blindsided his own Ministers with snap decisions on more than one occasion.
This is not a monarchy, sir; this is a government. And it's time Wall stopped trying to rule us and started trying to govern.
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