October 6 - So it Begins - The Alberta Teacher Strike

[puffnstuff]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

What are the consequences of "unexcused absence"?

Drawn and quartered.

[WinnipegFan]

Originally Posted by Sliver

Dang, that's harsh. I let my kids skip school once in a while. Sometimes a really neat social opportunity or interesting extracurricular can come up and if their grades are fine they can get a lot more out of missing a day versus just robotically going in. Hell, I've taken my kids out of school for epic powder days...those usually come around once or twice a year. Both graduated and are in university now, so they're doing fine.

Just noting that being militant about attendance isn't always the best. It's also okay to let them know they aren't owned by an institution.

I agree with Sliver here, I wish I could swing that but unfortunately I am the principal at my kids school. May look fishy if the whole family is away at the same time That being said, I fully support parents taking their kids out for a mental health day, I just always hope it is a day spent well. Sounds like you always have a great reason and an epic powder day would be at the top of the list. I also like that you had the caveat of good grades, they don't have to be perfect, but good, I appreciate that. Good on ya.

[Looch City]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

What are the consequences of "unexcused absence"?

Forced to write all essays and reports using only articles from Rick Bell as a reference.

[Buff]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

What are the consequences of "unexcused absence"?

Don't get to win the award for perfect attendance, if their school does such an award.

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

Checkmate? It happened just as I said it did. I generally referred to keyboard warriors in a preceding post but you are the one who actually called yourself one. I didn’t call you one directly until you referred to yourself as one because I assumed you identified as one.

You were responding directly to my post; the implication was quite clear that you included me amongst the keyboard warriors you were referencing. Which is fine, the shoe fits.

I already gave you an example of something very practical and impactful that you can do and also gave some reasoning for why it will be helpful. I’ll go into a little bit more detail below.

So if you really want this to happen you’d be best served by starting a public petition stating that the signees will support unions in their fight by committing to not buy products from any businesses that fire employees for supporting this fight and to vote out the UCP if they don’t fix both this problem and the labour code they gutted.

Sorry, I'm not going to start that petition. But I'd happily sign it. I care deeply about a lot of progressive causes. Unions don't really make my list. I'm sure I take everything they've done for me for granted and I'm sorry.

What has for me been incredibly frustrating while reading these posts is the lack of understanding of the longterm financial burden to unions that is being asked for and then hearing them be blamed for not doing enough by people whose historical lack of support for Unions is a big part of the reason why Unions don’t have more resources at their disposal to do what those folks want Unions to do for them now.

By lack of support I don’t mean having to be a Union member. It’s voting for and supporting parties that intentionally make it harder for Unions to do what they are supposed to be able to do and generally not being supportive of workers when they are in labour disputes where it is clear they aren’t being treated fairly by their employers.

It’s great that people finally seem to be starting to understand some of the benefits they can provide to the general public but you have to understand that after decades of few being supportive, members wrongfully being called lazy/entitled, or unions wrongfully being accused of only helping bad employees, there’s going to be some hesitation from unions to believe the public won’t leave them hanging high and dry to rebuild after this fight. Which is frankly probably something the UCP is hoping for.

This is an odd time to grind your axe about our past collective failures. I'd imagine 90% of the people vowing support right now have been voting orange since at least 2015. Sorry so many of our neighbours suck, I guess? I'm also sorry I haven't personally taken up the union cause all these years...Is that what you need to hear?

Unions definitely have a big PR problem. Most of it is probably unfair. I won't even try to suggest that any of the oft-repeated criticisms you mention are true or justified in any way...but I will say that nothing I've seen or heard in the last few days has done anything to disabuse me of those notions. Personally, I'm ambivalent about my own experience working within a union, but I'm still generally supportive overall. But this week's messaging hasn't really moved the needle for me in that regard. I just don't want to see any of our rights trampled, even if it doesn't apply to me personally (yet).

That’s why it would be helpful to see the public actually take steps to show unions they will support them longterm by demonstrating in some way an actual commitment to refusing to support any unreasonably anti-union businesses and governments. Better legislation will give unions the ability to grow and waste less money on frivolous court challenges while doing so. Businesses fearing public backlash for anti-union tactics will inevitably lead to less money being spent by unions dealing with that nonsense. Both help workers get the help of a Union if they want that, but the added stability also puts unions in a better position to support and represent their members with less resources being spent, which gives them more resources to potentially put into what you’re asking them to do now.

I say this in general terms but talk is cheap. Put yourselves in the shoes of unions for a moment. Would you trust the voting public of Alberta to not vote in another anti-union government without them doing anything of substance to convince you first?

If you and the majority of the public can do enough to convince Unions across the province that you’ve got their backs I’ll drive you up to the legislature building in Edmonton to give your speech because I’d love to hear it. I’ll even bring you a megaphone.

All good ideas. You guys gotta figure out a better PR game. Chastising new and existing supporters for the broader failures of the past ain't it.

I definitely would not trust us to not elect another despicable government. That's why we need to act ASAP.

Convincing each other is a two way street. Lots of us still have your backs. But I think the movement lost a lot of steam yesterday afternoon and it will continue to wane with each day that passes. Blame the rest of us if it makes you feel better, I guess?

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Slava

This is the part of your position that I can't understand. I get that there is a burden when you undertake this kind of action, but the other side of the coin is literally an existential threat to labour. If you can't collectively bargain, and public sector workers are going to be forced back to work with draconian legislation, that has to be far more concerning than the burden of a strike.

How many public sector agreements are going to be open for bargaining and resolved between now and the next election? I don’t even know the answer to that question but it’s likely not all of them. Even if hypothetically speaking all of the public sector agreements were due for renewal, right now the only presumed risk they currently take is having a contract imposed on them in violation of the charter. No job losses, no fines, litigation costs, etc.

Mind you if the UCP were to ramp up the crazy and start using the notwithstanding clause to pass more bad laws or impose new contracts on groups that aren’t even open for bargaining or something similar to that then I’d agree with you that there’d be a much greater sense of urgency but that isn’t the case right now.

Getting the UCP voted out of office(or recalled out of a majority, which personally I think that’s a pipe dream) eliminates the threat without risking Union locals bankrupting themselves with fines and litigation, or having employees lose their jobs. A Union isn’t going to be able to perform their primary duty which is to represent their members if they can’t afford to pay for a lawyer when they need to.

As a financial advisor do you think it makes more sense for a Union to put themselves into a position where they risk spending(hypothetical numbers) $20million or more of their $40million war chest with no guarantee of getting the outcome they are hoping for only to then need to spend additional money that they may no longer have on PACs when the election roles around, or does it make more sense to spend the smaller amount of money on the PACs and then if those fail to make the change and then go to the extreme options? Keeping in mind the latter option also gives them the ability in the interim to increase their funds and work on getting more support from the public.

[Slava]

^ I don’t know how many more agreements, but there’s a strike vote taking place right now for the HSAA. And this is the issue for unions. Once one government does this, it opens the door for others.

By the way, the irony of unions taking the “well it’s only one union and not many more are coming up” attitude is dripping with irony. Isn’t the exact point of the union, solidarity forever?

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

You were responding directly to my post; the implication was quite clear that you included me amongst the keyboard warriors you were referencing. Which is fine, the shoe fits.

That was a fun little merry go round.

Sorry, I'm not going to start that petition. But I'd happily sign it. I care deeply about a lot of progressive causes. Unions don't really make my list. I'm sure I take everything they've done for me for granted and I'm sorry.

Ok maybe give them time to get it going for you. In the meantime stop complaining that they’re not doing enough for you when you’re not willing to help and admittedly can’t be bothered to support them beyond signing a piece of paper.

This is an odd time to grind your axe about our past collective failures. I'd imagine 90% of the people vowing support right now have been voting orange since at least 2015. Sorry so many of our neighbours suck, I guess? I'm also sorry I haven't personally taken up the union cause all these years...Is that what you need to hear?

I was already aware. It’s too bad you think doing the same thing as before is going to lead to a different result.

Unions definitely have a big PR problem. Most of it is probably unfair. I won't even try to suggest that any of the oft-repeated criticisms you mention are true or justified in any way...but I will say that nothing I've seen or heard in the last few days has done anything to disabuse me of those notions.

You’re making it harder and harder for me to give any credibility to your claims that you’re wanting to support unions.

Personally, I'm ambivalent about my own experience working within a union, but I'm still generally supportive overall.

How have you been generally supportive? Like all BS aside, what have you recently or ever actually done to support the labour movement? I’m not asking to be a jerk or as some sort of got ya, I’m just pointing out that this is why unions would be skeptical of how much support the public would actually give them.

Not voting for the UCP because you don’t care for their views on certain things outside of their labour policies but being willing to vote for them if they change the views you disagree with while maintaining their anti-labour policies doesn’t qualify.

Helping a movement that is strongly opposed by very powerful people who spend billions globally fighting it unfortunately requires a little more effort than being neutral.

But this week's messaging hasn't really moved the needle for me in that regard. I just don't want to see any of our rights trampled, even if it doesn't apply to me personally (yet).

Well I hate to break it to you but you’re already seeing our rights being trampled yet you still don’t appear to be willing to do anything other than sign a petition and that’s just not going to change anything. Blaming unions for not doing enough when to do more they clearly need help that you’re not willing to actually give them isn’t likely a winning strategy either.

All good ideas. You guys gotta figure out a better PR game. Chastising new and existing supporters for the broader failures of the past ain't it.

I don’t disagree that Unions would benefit from better PR but I disagree with your characterization that I’m chastising you or anyone else. I’m being upfront and honest about the problems that are preventing the labour movement from being a more effective catalyst for positive change and suggesting practical solutions to those problems. How would you like for me to sugar coat it for you?

Most (non-union supporters/members)people that I talk to about this stuff in person genuinely seem to appreciate the no BS approach I take. I guess you would prefer that I take the AFL’s approach of overpromising and under delivering even though that seemed to disappoint you in the end. To each their own I guess.

I definitely would not trust us to not elect another despicable government. That's why we need to act ASAP.

Then why don’t you want to actually DO anything about it ASAP? Expecting everyone else to do things for you is rarely the fastest way to get anything done.

Convincing each other is a two way street. Lots of us still have your backs. But I think the movement lost a lot of steam yesterday afternoon and it will continue to wane with each day that passes. Blame the rest of us if it makes you feel better, I guess?

I’m not blaming you for anything. I’m saying quit complaining that others aren’t doing enough for you when you don’t want to do anything to help them.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Slava

^ I don’t know how many more agreements, but there’s a strike vote taking place right now for the HSAA. And this is the issue for unions. Once one government does this, it opens the door for others.

Private sector employers can’t invoke the notwithstanding clause. There’s a whole bunch of problems with the labour code that affects those workers and you’ve historically not given a #### about that so I’m starting to wonder if you actually care about union workers or if you’re only pretending to because in this moment you feel it gives you an opportunity to rag on unions.

By the way, the irony of unions taking the “well it’s only one union and not many more are coming up” attitude is dripping with irony. Isn’t the exact point of the union, solidarity forever?

Ok I just got my answer.

Solidarity doesn’t involve deluding yourself to believe you can always expect to win a war without some pain along the way.

[Slava]

I care about the abuse of power. I just think that if I was a union supporter, I would care about the abuse of power and the fact that the government just took away collective bargaining rights for a massive union, and it’s likely not the last time.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Slava

I care about the abuse of power. I just think that if I was a union supporter, I would care about the abuse of power and the fact that the government just took away collective bargaining rights for a massive union, and it’s likely not the last time.

You think that Unions considering all options before risking bankrupting themselves suggests they don’t care about the abuse of power? I got news for you Slava, Unions deal with abuses of power every day. The only thing that keeps them in a position to fight any abuses of power is their ability to assess their options and strategize rather than acting on their emotions in the heat of the moment.

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

That was a fun little merry go round.



Ok maybe give them time to get it going for you. In the meantime stop complaining that they’re not doing enough for you when you’re not willing to help and admittedly can’t be bothered to support them beyond signing a piece of paper.



I was already aware. It’s too bad you think doing the same thing as before is going to lead to a different result.



You’re making it harder and harder for me to give any credibility to your claims that you’re wanting to support unions.



How have you been generally supportive? Like all BS aside, what have you recently or ever actually done to support the labour movement? I’m not asking to be a jerk or as some sort of got ya, I’m just pointing out that this is why unions would be skeptical of how much support the public would actually give them.

Not voting for the UCP because you don’t care for their views on certain things outside of their labour policies but being willing to vote for them if they change the views you disagree with while maintaining their anti-labour policies doesn’t qualify.

Helping a movement that is strongly opposed by very powerful people who spend billions globally fighting it unfortunately requires a little more effort than being neutral.



Well I hate to break it to you but you’re already seeing our rights being trampled yet you still don’t appear to be willing to do anything other than sign a petition and that’s just not going to change anything. Blaming unions for not doing enough when to do more they clearly need help that you’re not willing to actually give them isn’t likely a winning strategy either.



I don’t disagree that Unions would benefit from better PR but I disagree with your characterization that I’m chastising you or anyone else. I’m being upfront and honest about the problems that are preventing the labour movement from being a more effective catalyst for positive change and suggesting practical solutions to those problems. How would you like for me to sugar coat it for you?

Most (non-union supporters/members)people that I talk to about this stuff in person genuinely seem to appreciate the no BS approach I take. I guess you would prefer that I take the AFL’s approach of overpromising and under delivering even though that seemed to disappoint you in the end. To each their own I guess.



Then why don’t you want to actually DO anything about it ASAP? Expecting everyone else to do things for you is rarely the fastest way to get anything done.



I’m not blaming you for anything. I’m saying quit complaining that others aren’t doing enough for you when you don’t want to do anything to help them.

No need to sugar coat anything. The labour movement just seems more impotent than I thought it was. But I guess I'm just crazy for expecting groups who specialize in organizing collective action to...organize collective action.

It's like if my neighbour was a firefighter named iggy and his neighbour's house was on fire. I'm ready and willing with my garden hose, and I'd love the expert to tell me exactly where its best to point it. But instead it turns out he's upset that I haven't been following him to work all these years to help him fight fires elsewhere. "Real convenient powderjunkie🔥🔥🔥now YOU want to fight THIS fire because it might spread to YOUR house🔥🔥🔥 eventually! 🔥🔥🔥 Now let me tell you a few things about the chronic 🔥🔥🔥 underfunding 🔥🔥🔥of the fire 🔥🔥🔥department🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

But not to worry, I phoned 911 and they assured me that they've started a conversation about maybe probably possibly perhaps having a day or two of joyous fire fighting in my neighbourhood if necessary. But not necessarily.

So ya...I'm still ready and willing to help, but since the experts don't seem to be in any rush I guess I'll just spray down my own house to keep it safe and monitor the situation...I certainly dare not question the fire departments tactics!



Anyways, let's go back to Ontario for a moment...you suggested the union situation was way weaker here in Alberta. And yes Alberta is the weakest in the country at 23.4%. But Ontario is second weakest at 26.1%. No other province is under 30% right now.

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1...pid=1410012901

So an you elaborate on why you think it's so impossible for us to implement similar action as swiftly as that they did? There's some key differences between the situations, but the timelines are not dissimilar:

Ford announced what they were doing on Monday Oct 31 and passed it on Thursday Nov. 3. The affected workers walked off on Friday the 4th (for day 1 of their strike, unlike our teachers). A general strike was threatened over the weekend, and Ford backtracked on Monday the 8th.

I completely understand why the teachers could not and should not continue to strike, but why did the AFL have to castrate themselves on Wednesday afternoon? I do not think things would have been as 'easy' here as they seem to have been there (our opponent is just as dumb but twice as evil), but generally following their playbook still seems sensible. I don't need immediate action...just explain why a slower course is necessary without tipping your hand that the action you envision sounds pretty lame (but damn we really missed the boat...a day of joyous protest on October 31 would have actually been pretty awesome)

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by Locke

Oh man...the Education system has really dropped the ball.

These children presumably have been taught that Calgary City Hall has absolutely nothing to do with the Teacher's Strike right?

What do they want Farkas to do?

The Children are always wrong.

There are a lot of protests that happen at City Hall that have nothing to do with council. Have you driven past there? Does Calgary City Hall have anything to do with Palestine and Israel?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Wormius

There are a lot of protests that happen at City Hall that have nothing to do with council. Have you driven past there? Does Calgary City Hall have anything to do with Palestine and Israel?

When Gondek was around it might have, you never could tell with her.

[Wolven]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

No need to sugar coat anything. The labour movement just seems more impotent than I thought it was. But I guess I'm just crazy for expecting groups who specialize in organizing collective action to...organize collective action.

What do you think is happening right now? The union leaders in Alberta have met and are working together. They appear to be going back to their respective memberships to ensure alignment because unions are not dictatorships, they are democracies where the unions vote and agree to take action.

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Anyways, let's go back to Ontario for a moment...you suggested the union situation was way weaker here in Alberta. And yes Alberta is the weakest in the country at 23.4%. But Ontario is second weakest at 26.1%. No other province is under 30% right now.

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1...pid=1410012901

So an you elaborate on why you think it's so impossible for us to implement similar action as swiftly as that they did? There's some key differences between the situations, but the timelines are not dissimilar:

Ford announced what they were doing on Monday Oct 31 and passed it on Thursday Nov. 3. The affected workers walked off on Friday the 4th (for day 1 of their strike, unlike our teachers). A general strike was threatened over the weekend, and Ford backtracked on Monday the 8th.

I completely understand why the teachers could not and should not continue to strike, but why did the AFL have to castrate themselves on Wednesday afternoon? I do not think things would have been as 'easy' here as they seem to have been there (our opponent is just as dumb but twice as evil), but generally following their playbook still seems sensible. I don't need immediate action...just explain why a slower course is necessary without tipping your hand that the action you envision sounds pretty lame (but damn we really missed the boat...a day of joyous protest on October 31 would have actually been pretty awesome)

There are a number of differences.

Unlike Ford, Smith did not announce that the NWC was in play days before doing it. There was speculation that it was going to happen but it wasn't until the day of bill hitting the floor that we were all made aware of it actually happening. Also, Smith implemented other legislation to eliminate debating on the bills so that it would move even faster and catch the opposition, unions, and citizens of Alberta off guard.

Furthermore, the UCP government increased the penalties significantly above what the standard penalties would be under the Labour laws. Did Ford do that? I do not believe he did. This time though, the UCP implemented the following:
$500 per day per person striking.
$500,000 per day per union striking.

Those numbers are insane. It definitely would make you want to get your ducks in a row before diving headfirst into the general strike.

And I thought a big part of the story in Ontario was that the police union said they would not issue the required tickets to fine the people striking (another step in solidarity). I have no idea if the police unions in Alberta will support the strike or do the bidding of the government (but I feel like it is the latter).

In the meantime, a new MLA recall website was just launched. How much do you want to bet that it was helped by the unions? As we discussed earlier, Gil made it pretty clear in his speech that his union's goal is to "bring down the government" and "make Smith a radio host again". So if the general strike is not moving as fast as you might want, maybe keep an eye on the recall movement to see if it starts surging instead.

Think about it for a second. If there are 350,000 union members in Alberta and they all mobilized to recall UCP MLAs, how much more effective might that be than if they "just strike". In just the last few hours they have updated the website to show a 4th UCP MLA is now targeted for recall (Rajan Sawhney) and they only need 14,893 signatures in Calgary-North West to trigger the recall vote. How many union members do you think are in that riding? If they all start gathering signatures, how fast do you think they can get to the required number?

My point is: Action is being taken. Get excited. Get activated. Instead of nitpicking each other in some kind of purity test, maybe we focus on working together to get though the checklist on this website in support of the teachers and all of the other workers in this province?

And I truly mean ALL workers. This government is not just bad to unions, everyone in the working class is being attacked by this government. Keep in mind that we have the lowest minimum wage in Canada.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

No need to sugar coat anything. The labour movement just seems more impotent than I thought it was.

And yet you’re looking to them for advice on how to rise up.

But I guess I'm just crazy for expecting groups who specialize in organizing collective action to...organize collective action.

It is a little crazy that you seem to think you know better than they do when it comes to the most sensible approach they should choose with the resources you’re guessing they have at their disposal.

It's like if my neighbour was a firefighter named iggy and his neighbour's house was on fire. I'm ready and willing with my garden hose, and I'd love the expert to tell me exactly where it’s best to point it.

I imagine he’d tell you that you’re not going to be very effective if you don’t actually pick up the hose and turn on the tap.

But instead it turns out he's upset that I haven't been following him to work all these years to help him fight fires elsewhere. "Real convenient powderjunkie🔥🔥🔥now YOU want to fight THIS fire because it might spread to YOUR house🔥🔥🔥 eventually! 🔥🔥🔥 Now let me tell you a few things about the chronic 🔥🔥🔥 underfunding 🔥🔥🔥of the fire 🔥🔥🔥department🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

Wow that’s a hot take if I’ve ever seen one.

But not to worry, I phoned 911 and they assured me that they've started a conversation about maybe probably possibly perhaps having a day or two of joyous fire fighting in my neighbourhood if necessary. But not necessarily.

That would be pretty brutal if a service that you’re paying for didn’t hold up their end of the bargain.

So ya...I'm still ready and willing to help, but since the experts don't seem to be in any rush I guess I'll just spray down my own house to keep it safe and monitor the situation...I certainly dare not question the fire departments tactics!

Do you ever find it difficult going through life having people hold your hand every step of the way?

So far you’ve been willing to sign a petition. But when I brought up getting a petition going, which is basically only a step up from signing one, you weren’t willing to do that. This suggests to me that you’re really not going to do much of anything.

I get it, you’re probably more of a lover than a fighter and that’s fine. But this is shaping up to be a fight and frankly the labour movement is better served without any unnecessary deadweight.

Anyways, let's go back to Ontario for a moment...you suggested the union situation was way weaker here in Alberta. And yes Alberta is the weakest in the country at 23.4%. But Ontario is second weakest at 26.1%. No other province is under 30% right now.

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1...pid=1410012901

So an you elaborate on why you think it's so impossible for us to implement similar action as swiftly as that they did? There's some key differences between the situations, but the timelines are not dissimilar:

Ford announced what they were doing on Monday Oct 31 and passed it on Thursday Nov. 3. The affected workers walked off on Friday the 4th (for day 1 of their strike, unlike our teachers). A general strike was threatened over the weekend, and Ford backtracked on Monday the 8th.

Have you ever taken a glance at the voting trends between the two provinces at both the provincial and federal levels of government? Notice any differences as it relates to electing parties that are Union-friendly or at least neutral vs those that are anti-Union?

I believe I’ve already mentioned the differences in Union density within the industries that are the economic drivers of both provinces. These things matter.

I completely understand why the teachers could not and should not continue to strike, but why did the AFL have to castrate themselves on Wednesday afternoon?

Maybe you should ask the AFL, I’m not affiliated with them. That being said even though I’m not overly impressed by how they handle things at times I’m willing to bet that they probably have a better understanding of what political strategies will work best with the resources they have than you do.

I do not think things would have been as 'easy' here as they seem to have been there (our opponent is just as dumb but twice as evil), but generally following their playbook still seems sensible. I don't need immediate action...just explain why a slower course is necessary without tipping your hand that the action you envision sounds pretty lame (but damn we really missed the boat...a day of joyous protest on October 31 would have actually been pretty awesome)

2 things:

1. Twice as evil can be a relevant factor
2. Strikes/Protests aren’t supposed to be joyous occasions

[Bigtime]

Originally Posted by Wormius

There are a lot of protests that happen at City Hall that have nothing to do with council. Have you driven past there? Does Calgary City Hall have anything to do with Palestine and Israel?

Originally Posted by Locke

When Gondek was around it might have, you never could tell with her.

The municipal plaza area fronting right onto Macleod trail is much more visible than the area you can gather at the McDougall Centre. The kids were smart to pick this location for their protest.

[Ashartus]

One of my wife's coworkers, who she had often described as one of the best teachers she had worked with, resigned yesterday. A couple more are talking about it and probably looking for other work before quitting.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Ashartus

One of my wife's coworkers, who she had often described as one of the best teachers she had worked with, resigned yesterday. A couple more are talking about it and probably looking for other work before quitting.

Sadly this is exactly what Smith wanted. ####ing ####.

[Icon]

Well that's fun, when I go to accept the e-transfer for the $30/day/kid support from the government, I get a big error screen saying the transfer has been cancelled, contact the sender.

Whattya figure my odds are of actually getting hold of someone to get that resolved, lol.