cupe 2008 financial statement and Cornerstone

8/7/2019 cupe 2008 financial statement and Cornerstone

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CUpEOSCFp Canad ian U n ion o f Pub l ic Em p loyeesSynd ica t canad ien de la f onc t ion pub l ique1 3 7 5 , b o u l . S t . Laurent B l v d . , Ottawa, ON K1G OZ7 (613) 237-1590, Fax/Telec.: (613) 237-5508, [email protected] / [email protected] / cupe.ca / scfp.ca

NATIONAL SECRETARY-TREASURER'S REPORTTO THE

NATIONAL EXECUTIVE BOARDOttawa, OntarioMarch 18 - 19, 2008

Sisters and Brothers:I want to thank the National Execu tive Board once a gain for supporting our historic2008 bud get in December. But before I get into m y report, I want to say howsadden ed I am, as all of us are, that Sister Donalda M acDon ald isn't with us heretoday. I will say more about our loss of a great sister later in my report, but I havea feeling Donalda is w ith us today in spirit as we m eet again in snowy Ottawa.As I reported to you in December, our budget's strength rests on three majorthemes.First, our strong, determ ined com mitment to fight privatization everywh ere in thecountry, with $2.5 million to fight privatization this year. Second, our great stridesand pro gress on the equality front, including the add ition of three new positions towork on equality issues, and third, our continued progress on our commitment toaddress the need for ad ditional staffing across the c ountry, while continuing toaddress the imbalance in the O ntario Region. W hile we added 1 8 full-timeequivalent positions to our staff complement across Canada (a record for onebudget in this new millennium), three of them will work in our national office, and15 are assigned througho ut the regions half of them in O ntario. Following up onthese staff positions, we had to make one small change for operational needschanging o ne pos ition from bilingual Ad ministrative Officer to bilingual Senior Officer.This change will have a very small impact on the budget.In addition to.our funding for anti-privatization cam paigns, we hav e increased ourDefence Bu dget allocation for cost-shared ca mpaigns to $2 m ill ion this year. It 'sa good thing, since last year we spen t over $2.3 million when our budg et wasprojected at $1.7 mil lion. This means our B oard did what i t needed to, app rovingprojects as required, based on w hat our m embers needed.

PAUL MOIST National President / President national CLAUDE GENEREUX National Secretary-Treasurer / Secretaire-tresorier nationalMARIO GERVAIS DONALDA MacDONALD BARRY O'NEILL KEVIN REBECK PATRICK (SID) RYAN General Vice-Presidents / Vice-presidents generaux% % y R01FSC


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This report includes unau dited financial statem ents for all our funds, wh ich painta clear picture of the state of our union's finances, though sma ll adjustments willbe reflected in the final audited financial statements becaus e invoices from 2 007continue to trickle in. As the financial statements reveal, we show a surplus inour General Fund of $8.3 million at the end of 2007. Most of this surplus is due toone-time events, such as the sale of our old building, and the move to our newbuilding in December, which m eant we only had one m onth of financing costs in2007. We also experienced unexpected savings in fuel costs, because the cost offuel throughout the year was not as high as we had expected at the beginning of theyear.Ope rational travel is another area of substantial savings, as 20 07 was th e first fullyear we benefited from an arrangement negotiated with Air Canada to allow us totake full advantage of bulk-purchased flight passes. We have adjusted our 2008budget to reflect continued savings. Staff also used less sick leave than planned forin the budget, and we have adjusted our budget accordingly. Details of these andother savings are highlighted further in my report.The goo d news about having a surplus is that we can expect our strength tocontinue for the foreseeable future, and we can increase our equity and continueto strengthen our fixed ass ets, like New Building Projects, wh ile confidentlyresponding to all challenges from employers, governments and right-wing thinktanks. We continue to face enormous challenges in every region of the country.W e will see more cam paign activity than at any time in our history this year, thanksto our historic $2.5 m illion investme nt in our fight against privatization, and our$2 m ill ion defence fund allotment for cost-shared cam paigns our biggest budgetto date in this category.The bottom line is we have 570,000 m embers across Canada w ho are ready todefend public services, achieve strong collective agreements, build regional andnational solidarity, and chan ge Ca nadian society for the better.Mem bers can work towards achieving their bargaining and campaign goals withconfidence, knowing they have the resources and support of their national union,and secu re in the knowledg e that our financial and collective strength will be lastingfor the foreseeable future. We are in a new era of strength and financial stability thatwill position us well as we face more and more difficult employers and governments.There's no crisis in CUPE. There hasn't been for some time now. And we need tomake sure we don't go back into crisis mode ever again. Gone are the days whenwe couldn't pay our bills, when we weren't sure if we could make payroll in a monthwith three pay periods. Members remember this and they don't want to go back,and we'l l make sure that doesn't happen.Thanks to our collective efforts and planning, we have a strong strike fund thatwill remain strong. Despite heavy use this past year, it stands strong at close to

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$28 million in the bank as I write this report. In fact, this year the strike fund paidout $17 million, the third largest draw on this fund in our union's 45-year history.Paul and I will also bring a motion to this NEB to create a new Fight-Back Fund,secured in our General Fund, to support our members facing extraordinary politicalfights or unexpected crisis, and to help them avert catastrophic attacks on theirrights and future by governments and employers.We will also continue to pursue building opportunities to move away from renting ouroffice space. The more we own our offices, the more we will have financialresources to support our members in the long term. This is the power of planningand sound finances, and the power of solidarity.Because the two go hand in hand. Solidarity without financial resources won't getyou very far. Strong finances without solidarity won't accomplish much either. A sNational Secretary-Treasurer, I look forward to building on our strength andsolidarity. Collectively, we all have a role to play in shaping our future.We will face challenges this year, as we have in the past, and if we pull together tosupport each other, we can overcome them and succeed beyond all expectations.As you read these financial statements, you will see evidence of our financialstrength. The solidarity we build from that will depend on all our efforts andcooperation. I look forward to working with you on all fronts.

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE PERIOD ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2007General FundThe total assets in the General Fund at December 31, 2007 were $94.2 million,virtually unchanged from $93.8 million at September 30, 2007. The bank balanceat December 31 was $3.8 million as compared to $11.6 million at September 30.Of this, $2.5 million is cash reserved for retirement payouts and replacement oftechnology equipment. The decrease in the bank balance over the fourth quarterof this year is largely due to a combination of new investment purchases, paymentof invoices for convention and capital purchases of properties. Investmentsincreased from $16.8 million to $20.1 million during the period.The total liabilities in the General Fund were $63.4 million at December 31,compared to $65.2 million at September 30.The Fund Balance in the General Fund as of December 31 was $30.7 million,compared to $28.6 million as of September 30, and $22.1 million one year earlier(December 31, 2006).The preliminary operating surplus for the year was $8.3 million.

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Per capita revenue, including projected per capita receivable, was over budget by1.9 million (1.4%). All regions, with the exception of Ontario, Saskatchewan andBritish Columbia, had per capita revenue greater than what was forecast in thebudget (largely due to strikes, like the Vancouver municipal strikes). And in Quebec,following major victories in pay equity, per capita revenue was $1.8 m illion higherthan expected.Investment income in the General Fund was over the budget forecast by $370,000.This resulted from d elays in the construction project, which delayed the full injectionof our equity investment into the new building, as well as interest rates andinvestment results coming in higher than had been anticipated.Total expenditures for the year were under budget by $3.8 million (2.8%).Below are some of the significant variances in expenditures:

Overall salaries and benefits were under budget by $2.4 million (3.2%). On apercentage basis, the variance was down from the September figure of 4.6%.Recapping what was said in the September report, the major reason for this isthe fact that the amount budgeted for sick leave was significantly more thanwhat was actually expensed. We have now had 18 months of experiencetracking sick leave usage and have reduced the 20 08 budget by half. Retiree Health Costs, which were taken into the General Fund budget for thefirst time this year, were under budget by $849,000 for the year. While webudge ted for a full year of these cos ts, the transfer to the General Fund d idnot occur until after the collective agreements were ratified in May. All of the

variance is due to this delay. Operational Travel was under budget by $777,000 (12.6%) for the year. In2007, this budget was increased by $457,000 mainly to bring certaindepartmental budgets more in line with actual spending history of the pastthree years. However, we have achieved savings which has surpassed ourexpectations as a result of using Air Canada flight passes. We are verypleased that after many years of exceeding the operational travel budget, wehave been able to bring spending in this area into line. Directors and staffdeserve credit for the efforts made to ensure that travel is done economicallyand effectively. Interest Building Financing is at $33,000 com pared to a bud get of $489,000.While we have been paying actual interest on the construction loan, theauditors have required us to add all interest expense paid up to the date ofoccupancy to the cost of the building and it is therefore shown as an assetand not an expense. Therefore, the interest charges against this budget lineare for the month of D ecember only.



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Fixed Travel expenses (mainly car and per diem costs) were under budget by$445,000 or 4.5%. In 2007, the budget was increased by $573,000 due toexpected increases in transportation co sts which did not materialize to thedegree expected.The rent expenses are $350,000 or 5.1% under budget. The main reasonwas that we budgeted to ensure sufficient room for the added future costs ofthe new building in the areas of depreciation and property taxes. Since thebuilding occupancy w as delayed unti l the beginning of Decem ber, most ofthese projected costs were not expensed this year.Postage expenses are running $210,000 or 27% under the planned budget.This is the result of an inadvertent budget discrepancy and we have adjustedthe budget for 2008.

The Ontario NDP C ornerstone Campaign show s zero expenditure againstthe $100,000 budget. In actual fact, that money was spent but we havesubsequently learned that instead of m aking a do nation as we had o riginallyanticipated and ap proved, we hav e in fact been given shares in a corporationfor our money. This requires a change in the way we account for thisexpenditure. Therefore, this expenditure has,created an asset for us, wh ichis shown on the B alance Sheet under the General Investments l ine. We budgeted $66,000 to ho ld our bi-annual EAP training session in 2007.However, the session has been delayed and wil l now be held in early 2008so there w ill be no expenditure against this budget l ine in the 2 007 year.^ Now that convention expenses are substantially paid for we are able todetermine that we are ove rspent on this budget line by $56Q.00 0. This ispartially explained by extraordinary cos ts incurred when we supported localschanging hotels to support our striking UN ITE HE RE sisters and brothers atthe Ho liday Inn on King (which p layed a role in securing a victory for theseworkers sho rtly after the convention).

NewFight-Back FundSom e of you ma y know that under our Constitution, we have a "N ational Conventionand National Events Assistance Fund" already in our General Fund.At this NEB , Paul and I wil l bring forward a m otion to create a new Fight-Back Fundto support our members facing extraordinary political fights or unexpected crisis,and to help avert catastrophic attacks on their rights and future by governm entsand em ployers. This fund sho uld ultimately be protected in the cons titution, andavailable to support extraordinary situations like the 19 92 ge neral strike in

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New Brunswick, the 2005 CUPE BC action in support of teachers, the OMERSfight-back in 2006 an d other historic attacks like the Calgary laundry wo rkers' strikein the late 1990's and the Common Front actions in Quebec in the 1970s. Thanks tothe strength we have created in all our funds, this new commitment is one we cancomfortably make to the benefit of all members. In all situations mentioned here,there is no question CUPE stood by m embers and never failed them, even if this hasmeant getting indebted. In recent years, we've been able to use surplus. What thismeans is that no surplus or no debt wil l be required for CUPE to support mem bers insuch situations. The NEB will be able to use this new fund to support our memberswhenever and wherever they are attacked.Global Justice Fund Rep lenishmentAlso at this NEB, a motion is being presented to replenish the Global Justice Fund,and anticipating its approval by the B oard, you w ill notice in the Financial Statementsthe liabilities show an amount of $400,000 due to the Global Justice Fund, and acorresponding expenditure on the schedule of G eneral Expenses. Thanks to ourfinancial strength, we are able to bo lster our support for this important globalinitiative.National Defence FundAssets in the National Defence Fund as of December 31, 2007 totaled $6.4 million,compared to $5.6 million at September 30, 2007. Liabilities totaled $5.4 million,leaving a F und B alance of $975,000.Cost-share programs approved by the NE B for the year cam e to $2.3 m ill ion, puttingthat spending envelope over budget by $600,000. This was partially offset by arecovery of funds unused from cost-shared campaigns in prior years totalling$427,000. Major Organizing expenses were $2.2 million, while National StrategicInitiatives totaled $1.2 million. Spending on Regional Strategic Initiatives alsototaled $1.3 million.You m ay remember in January 2008 new regulations cam e into effect for cost-sharecampaigns. We thank members and staff who provided feedback since the newrules have been applied, and I want to say the new requirements (by-law approvalletter, trustees' report and dues check-off report) need only be submitted once in acalendar year. That way, if a local submits more than one cost-share proposal thesame year, once the required documents are on file with our office, they won't needto be re-subm itted until the following year.National Strike FundTotal Assets in the Strike Fund as of Decem ber 31, 2007 were $31.4 m ill ion,compared to $33.8 million at September 30. These assets consisted of $2.5 millionin cash, $1.7 m illion in per capita receivable, and $27.1 m illion in investments.



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Under Liabilities, there were accou nts payable and a ccrued liabilities of $286,000and payables to the General Fund of $106,000 and to the Defence Fund of $21,000.Therefore, at December 31, 2007, the Fund B alance was $31.0 m ill ion, compa red to$32.3 million at September 30.Revenue into the Strike Fund, including investment income, was $11.2 million.Expenditures in the period were $16.9 million, resulting in a deficit for the year of$5.7 mil l ion, which would have been over $ 7 m ill ion if our only source o f revenuewere still per capita. The planned investments we have made provide a cushion forthis fund, and the plan is working.Lengthy strikes by Local 15, Loc al 1004 and Local 391 in V ancouver required us tosell over $7 million of our investments after cash in the Fund becam e exhausted. Tothe end of Decem ber, these confl icts alone resulted in a $9.9 m ill ion draw on theStrike Fund. Because the Fund was in such a strong po sition, not only were we ableto fully back our striking members for the length of the conflict, we were able to do soemerg ing with a Strike Fund that is still close to $28.1 m illion in the bank as I w ritethis report. Lengthy strikes and lockouts, including the ongoing dispute at theJournal de Q uebec, i l lustrate the imp ortance of ensuring that CUP E's S trike Fundremains as strong as possible.

STRIKES, LOCKOUTS AND SETTLEMENTSLocals 1450 an d 280 8 representing the journalists, photog raphers, editorial andadministrative staff at the "Journal de Quebec", entered their eleventh month of lock-out. In support, mem bers of Local 1872 who work in the print shop, have been o nstrike for the sam e period. While the mem bers continue to publish their ownnewspaper, "MediaMatinQuebec", the employer wasted an opportunity to settlewhen we returned to the ba rgaining table for two w eeks of talks that proved fruitlessbecause of m anagemen t's continued stubbornness. The circulation of "M ediaMatin-Quebec" continues to grow despite the employer's repeated attempts to stop itspublication. In fact, Media Matin is so popular now, they h ave had serious offersfrom the business community to buy the newspaper and turn it into a regular daily.We hope we can find a good settlement before that happens but it's a tribute to ourmembers' work.In Ontario, CUPE 855 m embers with the City of Kawartha Lakes have been on s trikesince February 4 to defend pub lic services and fight contracting out and agediscrimination.In British Columbia, Victoria Public Library workers, mem bers of Local 410, werelocked out o n February 17, following rotating job action initiated by the Lo cal inSeptember to fight for pay equity. Mostly women, these workers have been withouta contract since Decem ber 2006 and their battle for pay equity is profoundlyimportant for all workers.



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Since my last report, Local 1251 in New Brunswick reached a settlement followinga one-month strike by provincial correctional officers, community college custodiansand human services councillors.PER CAPITA ARREARSThe Decem ber 2007 arrears total at February 15, 2008 w as $5,974,926, which wasa decrease of $743,077 or 11.06% over the November 2007 arrears report. I wouldl ike to thank mem bers and staff for their efforts in this regard, which led to per cap itaarrears being down by half over the spikes we had seen in years around the turn ofthe millennium.TECHNOLOGY REPORTThe first quarter of 2008 is well under wa y with positive progress to rep ort in allinitiatives. Our focus is on maintaining momentum on current developmentprograms and the replacement of our old PCs.In December, we issued a request for proposal to three vendors to upgrade ouraging desktop and laptop computers. A vendor was selected in early January andthe process has begun. We are hoping to begin the rollout at the start of March,depending on delivery times from the vendor.On the development front, work on the Job Evaluation program know n as Just Paycontinues to progress and is on target for delivery. The target delivery date for JustPay Version 2 is June 2008.The sec ond ke y and equa lly imp ortant activity is initiating analysis and d esign for there-write of Per Capita and Convention systems. The requirement is to have thesystems operational by the end of 2008 and in full use in 2009, well before the nextnational convention. This will ensure that we have a stable and much improvedsystem for convention in 2009. The specification is complete and resourcing isunderway.The O perations team's focus is on implementing a new storage system that wil lincrease our capacity for data storage and improve backup capability and speed andgathering information to begin better integration of Quebec's computer systems andnetworks. In conjunction with this, we will be implementing an upgrade to the newversion of Exchange Mail and Blackberry software including a more robust anti-spam capability. This will provide a second e-mail server that is a current, up-to-the-minute version o f the primary server as well as the ability to switch ov er to thesecond server in the event of a failure without any impact on our users.With all the positive things I have to report about our new headquarters, there is onedark cloud, and that's the transition difficulties we ha d with our server and e-mail



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with the move to the new o ffice. I want to thank all the staff and m embers for theirpatience during those difficult times .STAFF TRAINING AND DEVELOPM ENTPlanning is underway for the weeklong staff training sessions that take placeannually in the spring and fall. Once again, regional staff working in Alberta,Saska tchewan an d M anitoba will participate in joint training, including a three-dayleadership developm ent program. Two one -week programs wil l take place in Junefor national service representatives w orking in Ontario because of the large num berof staff. Staff representatives in the Atlantic and Maritimes regions will join togetherfor five days of training, while staff in British Colum bia will take part in a three-daysession in June. The agenda for each of these sessions is being developed throughthe regional training com mittees that include CUPE 's regional directors, nationalstaff representatives and Union Development.Also in developm ent is a new IT staff training program aim ed at ensuring thatCUP E em ployees get the training they need to fully take advantage of the co mputersystems to which they have access. Union Development and CUP E's IT departmentare working together to carry out a needs assessm ent. Once this is completed,training will begin.NATIONAL OFFICE BUILDING UPDATEThe m ove to our new headquarters was completed in December, and operations arerunning smoothly. The Atrium is now finished, with construction of the canopiescomp leted. This is a potential venue for media events and receptions, which wil lpresent additional cost savings for C UPE in the future. The conference centre is stil lunder construction, and . that is why our N EB meeting is not yet held at the newbuilding, but operations in the main tower are unaffected. Members and staff can beproud of our new environmentally fr iendly and aw ard winning building. Pam phlets .explaining its many energy and resource s aving features are on display in. the Atriumand will be sent to locals in our general m ailing.HYBRID VEHICLESI am proud to report that following initial disappointm ent with manufacturers notdelivering the prom ised products, we now have 11 orders from staff who havechosen the 2 008 S aturn Aura Greenline for their fleet vehicle. Although this mo delwas not sch eduled for release the same tim e as other fleet vehicles, we adviseddrivers accordingly and 11 staff mem bers decided to try them o ut despite a delay inchanging over from their previous fleet vehicle. We are also using one of thesehybrids as our floater vehicle, for transitional and temp orary use in Ottawa, To rontoor M ontreal, depending on need. This wil l allow m ore staff to try out the Greenlineand encourage future orders.



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We were able to push General Motors working with our representative to allowCUPE's orders to be processed. In fact, CUPE is the first Canadian organization tosucceed in getting these. vehicles from GM . We are very pleased to have theseorders scheduled for production in March, April and May. This means we will soonhave two of these new vehicles on the road in British Columbia, one in Manitoba,five in Ontario and three in the Maritimes.PROPERTIES AND LEASEHOLDSPropertiesThe building which houses our Maritimes Regional Office in Fredericton,New Brunswick, has becom e functionally obsolete and w e carried out apreliminary feasibility study to assess whether we should dispose of ourcurrent asset and relocate the office. We have identified a building site next tothe New Brunswick Nurses Union's new building. The site has a strong streetpresence, is well situated relative to our union ac tivities, and similar to the Mo nctonArea O ffice site, it is expec ted to appreciate in value.At this stage, we are estim ating total costs (land and building) at $1.7 million.Presuming a sale price on our existing premises of $395,000, this would represent anew capital investment of approximately $1.3 million. We will submit an offer on thevacant land with a $5,000 fully refundable deposit with 60 days in which to completeour diligence. When we get to the design stage, just like our national office,Moncton and Cranbrook, our plans will reflect LEED principles, with a focus onwellness and accessibility, as well as environmental considerations.Two motions will be submitted at this Board in order to complete the Fredericton andVictoria purchases.We will also present a motion to enable CUP E to work w ith Station 20 W estDevelopment Corporation with a view to contributing $100,000 and guaranteeinga loan of up to $150,000 to suppo rt Station 20 W est in Saskatoon, once our duediligence has been completed, to support this important aboriginal community andsocial development project.The new Cornwall Area Office was ready for our staff to move into on December 12,2007.We also signed an offer on a 3,000 square foot property in Kingston, Ontario. Ouroffer was accepted, we co mpleted our due di ligence, waived our conditions and thesale closed on February 29, 2008. The interior designer and construction contractorretained for the redevelopment of the interior were advised that our time frames withrespect to our current lease would require that the space be available for occupancyby June 15, 2008, allowing the staff a two-week window in wh ich to move.



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In Victoria, British Colum bia, we conditionally secured a co mm ercial property (vacantland) with the view o f building a new three-story 24,000 s q. ft. union office building.The propo sed form of ownership would be Strata, similar to residential condoownership. CUP E N ational would be purchasing an interest in the building w ith theother prospective owners, other unions and CUPE Locals. Commercial propertyvalues in the Greater Victoria core area are beyond the abil ity of mo st unions to ow nproperty, therefore Strata office owne rship presents an opp ortunity to own a piece ofthe property, build equity and share the cost of common meeting rooms. CUPENational's square footage interest would be 2,500 s q. ft. purchased in the form ofa Strata Corporation. Costs are being com piled as we wo rk with architects andcontractors. Once determined, we w ill complete our d ue di l igence of this project andensure all parties are in agreement before m oving forward.The retrofitting project of the new Com ox prop erties in B ritish Colum bia isprogressing well and completion is set for the end of March 2008.

LeaseholdsNotwithstanding that the lease for the Atlantic Reg ional Office was renewed toSeptem ber 30, 201 0, we are exploring alternatives for either the acquisition of abuilding or the purchase of vacan t land, with the prospect of co nstructing a newbuilding.In Bathurst, New Brunswick, we are exploring the option of extending the lease andexpanding the space by another 500 square feet to accomm odate our expandingrequirements.We will be approaching the landlord for the Yarmo uth Office in Nova Sc otia to obtainproposed renewal rates (current lease expires July 31, 2008).The lease for the Sydney Office in Nova Scotia has now been renewed, extendingour tenancy in the premises until the end of August 2010.We approached the landlord for the North Bay Area Office in Ontario to obtainproposed renewal rates on a five-year term (current lease expires June 30, 2008).We c ontinue to explore the options available to us with regard to Timm ins Office,Ontario (lease expires October 31, 2008); Peterborough, Ontario (lease expiresDecem ber 30, 2008); Red D eer, Alberta (lease expired Decem ber 31, 2006 - we arecurrently on month-to-month tenancy), and Nanaimo in British Columbia (leaseexpires June 30, 2008).



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The brokerage firm engaged to begin the search for alternatives to house ourOntario Regional Office in Scarborough is conducting their evaluations. They haveprovided u s with a coup le of preliminary alternatives, which are currently beingreviewed. If we do nothing in the Toronto market and continue leasing,approximately $44 million will be spent over 20 years. If we buy a lot and build ourown o ffices, it may cost around $34 m ill ion creating a savings of approximately$10 million over the 20-year timeframe to support our members' activism. That'swhy we are pursuing real estate projects and o wning, rather than renting: that'sone way we build our strength to support our two-year $5 million National Anti-Privatization Initiative and our new Fight-Back Fund.

PENSION ADMINISTRATIONEffective January 1, 2008, I will be Chair of the Joint Board of Trustees and BrotherGary Johnson Vice-Chair.The following trustees were appointed to sit on the Joint Board of Trustees effectiveJanuary 1, 2008: Brother Brian Edgecombe, replacing Sister Diane Veilleux, asCOPE Alternate Trustee; and effective February 1, 2008: Sisters Donna Ryan,Yolanda McC lean, Tammy G reaves and Brother D'Arcy Lanovaz, replacing BrothersTom Graham, R ick MacM illan, Randy Sykes, and the late Sister DonaldaMacDonald, as CUPE Trustees and CUPE Alternate Trustees. CUPE will now havegender balance overall in its representation on the Joint Board of Trustees.The Trustees have filed the January 1, 2007 actuarial valuation with the appropriategovernment authorities.The severance enhancement benefit for pension plan m embers who have retired orterminated employment in 2007, was processed in December/January. The totalamount payable is $95,888.Preparations are underway for the 2007 A nnual Report, the Pension Fund Audit andthe Mem bers' Annual Statements.As per the 2006-2009 collective agreements, the pension plan staff are currentlyprocessing the payment to current retirees who have a m inimum of 10 years ofCUPE pensionable service and whose annual CUPE Pension Plan Benefits in 2007was less than $15,000 so that their annual payout is topped up to $15,000. Suchpayment is made only to those retirees who received a similar payment last year.

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Deaths

Sister Donalda MacDonald, one of CUPE's great leaders, passed away after avaliant battle with cancer on January 20, 2 008, one day shy of h er 50 t h birthday.I was privileged to join hundreds of CUPE members at the service honoring SisterDonalda's l i fe and contribution to her com munity and h er union. Sister Donaldaserved for eight years as a m ember of the N ational Executive Board. In coop erationwith the PEI Division, May 3, we wil l give CUPE mem bers an opportunity to paytribute to our great sister (details to be annou nced).It is with sadness tha t we also report the passing of the following:Ms. S andra Sundram, spouse of retiree Brother Govind Sundram, D ecember 20, 2007.Sister Heather Lomax, retiree, February 3, 2008.Mr. Wayne Chisholm, spouse of retiree Sister Ruby Chisholm, February 10, 2008.Brother Paul Jordison, retiree, March 7, 2008.Brother Ron Crawley, national researcher, March 27, 2008Retirements

Brother Paul Gervais, SCFP. Quebec, February 1, 2008Sister Liz Henderson, N ational Office, February 1, 2008Sister Linda Morin, Dalhousie Area Office, March 1, 2008Sister Carmela Allevato, BC Regional Office, June 16, 2008Sister Ginette Quesn el, National Office, July 1, 2008Sister Susan Keeley, Calgary Area Office, September 1, 2008Brother David J. Reynolds, Saint John's Area Office, October 1, 2008

CONCLUSIONOur collective strength continues to support our members' activism and unionactivities. Our strong financial position, in all three funds, and our move to solidifyour office infrastructure from coast to coast to coast means our members can tackletheir bargaining objectives, campaigns to defend services and their fight-backsagainst privatization and contracting o ut with confidence, and the resources to backtheir determination. This year's historic convention decision to set aside $5 milliondollars over the next two years to fight privatization everywhere is som ething we canall be proud of. Our new staff positions, progress on equality and continued effortsto rebalance staffing needs across the country means we have the resources, bothhuman and financial, to support our - collective efforts across Canada. That's thepower of 570,000 mem bers working towards a comm on goal and that means anylocal, in any region, can count on CUPE's support to accomplish their goals.



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The tremendous strides our union is making on equality, fighting right-winggovernments, defending jobs and services, reducing our environmental footprint andcreating a lasting base of office infrastructure across the co untry, all mea n we areinto a new era of reliable strength and solidarity that will position our mem bers wellinto the future. I look forward to talking to delegates at upcoming DivisionConventions about the future, while celebrating our accomplishments. Our struggleswill never be over, because there will always be ways we can improve ourworkplaces and communities. With our collective strength and solidarity, we canaccomplish a great dea l.

Respectfully submitted,

CLAUDE GENEREUXNational Secretary-Treasurer:pmc/cope 491


cupe 2008 financial statement and Cornerstone

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