June 21 is National Aboriginal Day

CUPW, in a spirit of solidarity with Aboriginal peoples, recognizes and celebrates National Aboriginal Day.

June 21 is a time to honour the achievements of Indigenous people and to recommit to human rights and justice for Aboriginal peoples.

On June 21^st we must send a message to both Stephen Harper and Canada Post.

Tell the Government to sign the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Canada is one of three countries in the world that have not ratified the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples.

Over a million Indigenous people reside in the provinces and territories. The United Nations declaration would affirm their right to self-determination, their land rights, their rights to cultural identity, and their right to protection against genocide and discrimination.

The Harper government told the United Nations the situation of Indigenous peoples is “the most pressing human rights issue facing Canadians”. Why then would the Canadian government repeatedly refuse to sign the declaration?

On June 21^st tell Harper to sign the United Nations declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples

Tell the Government to Protect Aboriginal Children

Aboriginal children are drastically over represented in child welfare care.

This is driven by poverty, poor housing and the legacy of residential schools.

Repeated reports, including by the Auditor General of Canada, confirm the federal government funding for child welfare services on reserves is inadequate. It must be changed to ensure Aboriginal children and families on reserves receive adequate and respectful services. Although the federal government has been aware of these gaps in its child welfare funding for over nine years, the problem continues.

On June 21^st tell Stephen Harper to properly fund services for Aboriginal children and their families.

Tell Canada Post to hire more Aboriginal Workers

Canada Post has consistently failed to live up to their obligations under the Federal Employment Equity Act in regards to the hiring of Aboriginal workers.

CUPW recently sent a letter to Canada Post outlining our concerns about Aboriginal hiring:

Canada Post’s hiring process needs to be changed if they want to employ more Aboriginal workers.

Canada Post needs to develop stronger relations with the Aboriginal community.

In recent hirings in a number of communities, Canada Post completely failed to hire even one Aboriginal worker.

On June 21^st tell Canada Post to increase the number of Aboriginal people working at Canada Post.