On October 28th, 2021, I was elected to the position of USJE National President. It is truly an honour to have been entrusted with this leadership position after serving for 14 years as the Regional Vice-President for CSC Community – Parole Board of Canada (West) and seven years as National Vice-President.
Words can’t express how excited I am to enter this new period of my Union involvement and to take on the challenges that lie ahead.
I appreciate the trust that has been put in me. I will not take this trust for granted and will work tirelessly for our members.
I want to sincerely thank Brother Stan Stapleton for his years of service to our Union and the leadership he provided during his tenure. We have made much progress over the past seven years under his leadership, and I look forward to continuing this good work in the future.
I also want to congratulate Sister Lynette Robinson on her election to National Vice-President for USJE. I am excited to work with her in her new role.
The new National Executive, comprised of 17 Regional Vice Presidents, will seize opportunities to come together and assist USJE members as we navigate the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. There is much to do to ensure USJE members are able to do their work safely – but USJE is up for the challenge.
USJE is a large and diverse union that represents employees within 18 government departments. While the work of our members varies widely among and within these 18 departments, we are united in our commitment to uphold public safety.
Over the next 20 months, there will be much activity at the local, regional and national levels within our Union. My vision is clear and was enthusiastically endorsed at USJE’s National Convention. USJE’s top three priorities are as follows:
1) Defining the New Normal
USJE will demand that all departments work collaboratively with our Union to define the new normal and future working conditions.
2) National Presumptive Injury Legislation Campaign
USJE will develop a robust campaign to engage provincial and federal elected officials and key administrators on changing legislation to include more of our members for presumptive injury compensation.
3) Communications
USJE will implement a dynamic communications strategy that will modernize and enhance interactions, sharing, and transparency between the USJE National Office, Regional Vice-Presidents, Local Executives as well as the membership at large.
As your new President, I look forward to working with all of you and to helping build a stronger Union.
I hope that all Convention delegates and observers are reinvigorated and ready for service as they return to their respective worksites.
I have made a strong commitment to sustained action over my mandate, and I am confident that our outstanding team will deliver positive results for USJE members in the months and years ahead.
In Solidarity,
David Neufeld
USJE National President