It's not always easy working with a disability. Often colleagues can be judgmental and unforgiving. Despite legal protection and accommodations to your working environment, you can face discrimination and barriers to full participation at work. The Workers with Disabilities Caucus gives you a safe place to connect with others who can truly relate.
The Caucus' slogan is "Finding a Fit'. The group works to increase awareness about the challenges disabled workers face returning to work, especially when your employer must accommodate you with lighter duties. The key message is that there's a place for everyone.
The Caucus encourages members to participate in the union as stewards, at regional meetings and Convention, and by running for top elected offices. The Caucus elects its own delegates to Convention.
It meets twice a year, bringing together one rep from each BCNU region. For more information on the roles and responsibilities of a caucus regional representative, please
click here. If you represent your region on the Workers with Disabilities Caucus, and would like to request funding from BCNU to further your group's goals and initiatives, please complete the
Regional Caucus Funding Request Form.
For more information, or to join the Caucus,
contact the chair
or
Hanif Karim, Human Rights, Equity and Health Policy Officer.
Care for Self – Care for Others
Even at the best of times, a shift can be challenging – often exhausting – and even more so through a nursing shortage, the pandemic, and extreme weather emergencies related to climate change. In these times, self-care and care for our colleagues is even more important to our collective health and well-being.
BCNU’s Workers with Disabilities Caucus Care for Self – Care for Others initiative is one which actively acknowledges our essential interdependence – recognizing that care for self is how we care for others.
Self-care can mean taking time to talk with friends, go for a walk, listen to music, meditate, read a book, cook a meal, watch a show, or visit with loved ones.
One important form of self-care is ensuring that you use your hard-fought collective agreement rights and take your assigned breaks. Those minutes away may seem insignificant but as BCNU’s resilience workshop reminds us - just a few minutes spent reconnecting with your body can make all the difference. The self-paced Introduction to Embodying Your Practice is divided into four on-line modules which are typically completed over four weeks. Give this gift to yourself by visiting the Events Calendar to register.