United in Struggle

A large percentage of workers in the Public Sector are unionized, but our unions are in a state of retreat, under constant attack from the government. In the BC Teachers Federation (BCTF), we keep hearing that working conditions get worse and worse every year. How is this possible when we have a union? The toothless approach that our unions are taking towards our employers is not working. We need democratic, combative, and militant unions, something that our unions are currently not. It’s up to us to organise to take the union movement as far as it’s able to go.

So what do we mean when we say our unions need to be Democratic, Combative, and Militant? By Democratic, we mean that union members on the shop floor are organized and energized to take their lives into their own hands and change things in their workplace and their union. By Combative, we mean that the members of our unions are unafraid to carry out major disruptive actions such as strikes, direct action, and political campaigns in defense of the working class. And by Militant, we mean that the members of our unions work in the interests of the entire working class, and not just the narrow economic interests of their unions and workplace.

We want to transform the working class into a movement that is capable of taking action beyond what is currently possible; ultimately political strikes, and real power. But our immediate task in service of this broader vision is to educate, organize and mobilize the members of our unions. Members of the Public Sector Caucus (PSC) will bring our politics into the unions, and bring the most militant and dedicated workers to the PSC.

In the next year, the PSC will be working on launching campaigns to engage with and lead workers in the public sector. PSC meetings will be held once every two months, with our next meeting in January 2026. If you’re a worker in the public sector and want to get organised, join the East Van Workers Assembly Public Sector Caucus!