Two big Canadian unions talk merging

OTTAWA, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The Canadian Auto Workers union and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers union said they are beginning discussions about merging.

"There's a lot of work left to do," CAW president Ken Lewenza said Thursday. "We're moving along but we're still at a preliminary stage and far off from a deal."

Talks of merging come amidst increased worry over the waning influence of unions while corporations and the government hold more power, the Toronto Star reported.

Along with loss of power, the two unions are trying to find a better way to represent workers as membership levels stay flat or fall.

"We're trying to figure out how the labor movement is going to look in five years and how do we strengthen the commitment to our members," Lewenza said.

Experts say the new union could be the largest merger in Canadian history: The CAW represents 200,000 workers and CEP has 125,000 members.

"This would certainly be the largest among mergers in the private sector," said Robert Hickey, an assistant professor of industrial relations at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario.

CEP President Dave Coles said the conservative government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper is implementing policies that are weakening social benefits and favor corporations over workers.

"They're leading us in a direction that I believe Canadians don't want to go and we're trying to use our economic clout through things like mergers to influence policy," Coles said.

About the merger, Coles said: "I think it would be a good fit. We're both Canadian unions with representation in many sectors."