Retiree Chair Report, December 2016 By Fred Dougan

Well two months have gone by already and things are going pretty good. I am looking forward to the NEW YEAR.

February’s Retiree Meeting Gordon Graham Director of ASR health care trust is coming to the retirees meeting in February to make a presentation about our health care benefits. I will have some questions for him and you as retirees may have some as well. I will look for other experts that can make presentations at our meetings and help retirees to gain information that we can all use to improve the quality of our retirement in future. My DAD always told me to learn something new every day,  it will help you as you go through life. Well he was right, there was a few days missed, but not a lot.

Recreation Committee John Nelly and I have been looking for retirees interested in being on the Recreation Committee. We would like to get a Committee in place in the New Year. Recreation is important for retirees, it is important that we stay active and use the Retiree Centre.

Trans Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement. We are hearing that the TPP agreement is dead in the House and Senate in the USA. Hopeful this is true as it is a bad agreement for CANADA. Trump is also saying he will re-negotiate NAFTA and Trudeau is saying he will as well. We all know the jobs that were lost under NAFTA was unbelievable disaster for manufacturing in Canada. For the love of me I cannot see how Justin Trudeau thinks he he can get a better deal for Canada with Donald Trump, but we will see. There a old saying the tale does not wag dog . Canada is the tale and the USA is the dog.

Executive Board Things on the the local union Executive Board have been going good in the last two months and we have handled the issues that came up, hopeful  this continues and there is flat water a long way over the next three years. In closing on behalf of the retiree Executive Board I would like to wish you all, Happy Holidays a Merry Christmas and a Happy New  Near.

2017 is going to a great year I feel it.

Fred Dougan,
Retiree Chair, Unifor Local 199