Media Advisory: Thursday, June 17, 2004

GRANDE PRAIRIE — The Provincial Executive of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees will hold its next regular meeting in Grande Prairie this Saturday, June 19.

Meanwhile, AUPE President Dan MacLennan will be touring worksites and flipping burgers at a barbecue in support of Alberta’s cattle producers sponsored by AUPE Local 056/005, AUPE Local 043/004 and United Nurses of Alberta Local 37.

The barbecue will take place Friday, June 18, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the courtyard of the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Grande Prairie.

“This union recognizes the important role Alberta beef producers play in the province’s economy and for the families of many of our members, especially in rural areas,” MacLennan said. “We backed them last year and we will continue to support them.”

The AUPE Provincial Executive — made up of the union’s president, executive secretary-treasurer, four vice-presidents and the representatives from each of the union’s 31 locals — will meet Saturday in AUPE’s new Grande Prairie office.

The new AUPE office — which opened in mid-May to serve AUPE’s many members in the Grande Prairie area — is located at no. 102, 9815 – 101st Avenue. “Our membership has grown dramatically in this area in the past three years and this new office is one way to help deal with that growth,” MacLennan said.

The office is staffed by Membership Services Officer Tim Falkiner and support staff. The office can be reached by calling 780-513-3520 in Grande Prairie and area, or by calling AUPE’s toll-free number, 1-800-232-7284, from anywhere in Alberta and pressing 9.

MacLennan will be available for interviews with Grande Prairie area media on AUPE’s positions regarding the problems with public-private partnerships to fund health care facilities, the effects of inadequate funding on the Alberta post-secondary education and health care systems, legislation affecting smoking in Alberta, the upcoming federal election and any other topics of concern to the media and public.

To arrange an interview, please call MacLennan on his cell phone, 780-232-8392.

The Provincial Executive, made up of elected representatives of all AUPE locals, is AUPE’s governing body between conventions. AUPE Local 056/005 represents health facility general support service employees in Grande Prairie, including trades, dietary, clerical, housekeeping workers and others. Local 043/004 represents auxiliary nursing care employees, including licensed practical nurses, nursing attendants and others.

For more information, contact:
Dan MacLennan, President, AUPE, 780-930-3301 or 780-717-2943 (cellular phone)
David Climenhaga, Communications Director, AUPE, 780-930-3311 or 780-717-2943 (cellular phone)