= Brenda Wagg Is a co-chair of
D3’s Women of Steel committee.

Ex-IWA Woman's Committee
Chair takes on a new role
Well-known union activist
and Local 1-2171 executive
board member Brenda Wagg,
former chairperson of the
IWA Canada National
Women’s Committee, has
recently been appointed as
co-chair of District 3’s
Women’s Committee.

“It's an honour to be work-
ing with Karen and the other
women in our district,” she
says. “Former IWA women
are getting involved in the
policies and programs of
Women of Steel.”

Sister Wagg and co-chair
Karen Adams, from the Local
2952 office in Burnaby, B.C.,
are keen to ensure that all
local unions in the district,
which haven't done so
already, set-up Women's
Committees, as set out ina
resolution at the union‘s 32nd
Constitutional Convention
held in Las Vegas in April.

District 3 Director Steve
Hunt and the district
Women’s Committee encour-
age both local unions and
area councils to take part.

Communication has been
sent out to all local unions,
encouraging contact with
women’s committee mem-
bers throughout Western
Canada.

= The conference included a women’s choir, from Local 2020 in Sudbury, presentation
accompanied by accoustic guitar. usw pHoto

IWA COUNCIL LOCALS’ WOMEN ATTEND NATIONAL CONFERENCE

Women of Steel Build Power

IWA COUNCIL local unions across
Canada sent women delegates to the
Steelworkers’ National Women’s
Conference in Toronto this fall.

The “Women of Steel: Building Power”
conference took place at the Holiday Inn in
Yorkdale, between October 16 - 18. The
timing of the conference was chosen to
coincide with the wrap-up of the promo-
tion of the Global Women's Charter, a doc-
ument drafted by various women’s groups
which are travelling throughout the world
until October 17, to mark the International
Day for the Elimination of Poverty.

The conference also celebrated the twen-
tieth anniversary of the Steelworkers’
Humanity Fund which sponsors humani-
tarian and trade union projects in several
nations, some which focus on assisting the
deyelopment of women workers and their
communities.

There were several international guests,
from various fund projects, in attendance,
as well as women’s group activists from
Canada.

Following registration and a reception

on October 16, the conference featured
numerous panel presentations and work-
shops on Building Power in the union to
ensure greater participation of the women
membership at the rank and file and local
levels. Topics included discussions on
equality issues women face in Canada,
activist training, how to run a union meet-
ing with proper parliamentary procedures
and rules of order, and how to Build Power
for women at the local union level.

Steelworkers’ Local 1-500 activist Mary
Lou Scott, a long-time former IWA activist
and former vice chairperson of the IWA
National Women's Committee, made a pres-
entation on running a union meeting.

Former IWA National Women’s
Committee chairperson Brenda Wagg,
now co-chair of Western Canada District
3’s Women Committee, says many
women in IWA Council-affiliated locals
enjoyed the October conference.

“It was great opportunity to learn more
about the Steelworkers’ programs and
how we can make contributions to them,”
she says.

18 T DECEMBER 2005 THE ALLIED WORKER