By Doug Draper
A small but determined group of representatives for Niagara area unions and seniors entered the Niagara Falls, Ontario constituency office of Conservative MP and Justice Minister Rob Nicholson demanding to speak to him.
Union reps Lou Ann Binning (left) and Heather Kelley (right) with Seniors rep George Sitek during brief "occupation" of Tory MP Rob Nicholson's Niagara Falls riding office. Photo by Doug Draper
The group of six, led by Heather Kelly, vice president for the Niagara Regional Labour Council, wanted to talk to Nicholson about the Conservative government’s recently expressed interest in cutting back on or possibly making millions of Canadians approaching retirement wait longer for Old Age Security benefits.
“We are one of 21 groups across the province visiting the offices of Tory MPs to speak to them (about any plans to cut or put off providing pension assistance to seniors,” said Kelly after the group was told by constituency office worker that Nicholson was busy in Ottawa. In the spirit of the ‘Occupy Movement’ the group chose to “occupy” the office for a little over an hour, waiting for phone call from the MP before leaving.
Many seniors who were struggling to get by on low incomes in the years leading up to their retirement are living under the poverty level as it is, Kelly told Niagara At Large outside Nicholson’s constituency office. If anything, the federal government should be heeding her Labour Council’s call for a doubling of pensions for seniors who find themselves in those straights “so they can live out there years with some dignity,” she said.
George Sitek, who represents 29 Niagara area seniors clubs for United Seniors Citizens of Ontario, said seniors have concerns about their own pensions, and are also worried what will happen to the pension system for their children and grandchildren. Retirement benefits are not keeping up with the cost of living now, said Sitek, and if they are cut “seniors will fall even further behind.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper floated the idea of making changes to Old Age Secuirty late last month while addressing leaders from other countries at an international economic forum in Switzerland. He insisted that “reform” to OAS is needed because of the disproportionally large numbers of Baby Boomers approaching retirement in Canada.
At the site of other constituency offices across Ontario this February 9, some union and senior groups vowed to continue their “occupation” of the offices until the Conservative government representative for those riding offices satisfied their request for a conversation on pensions.
“Prime Minister (Stephen) Harper will soon know he will have the biggest fight of his life on his hands if he tries to go forward with any of this,” Ontario Federation of Labour president Sid Ryan told The Toronto Star at the Whitby, Ontario office of Conservative Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.
Orville Thacker, president of the Ontario Federation of Union Retirees, said members of his organization are “fed up” with the Harper government undermining the rights of workers and now vulnerable seniors.
“He’s about to learn the same lesson that seniors taught two Prime Ministers before him: if you touch seniors’ rights, you do so at your own peril,” said Thacker, adding that more than half of all seniors, after paying taxes for most of their lives, find themselves living on less than $25,000 a year after they retire.
Harper’s expressed interest in making changes to pension assistance set off a firestorm of debate in parliament during the first week of this February with Liberal and NDP leaders vowing to join seniors and other citizens groups in protest until the government backs down.
(Niagara At Large invites you to share your views on this post in the comment boxes below. Please remember that NAL does not post anonymous comments or comments by people using pseudonyms. Only comments attached to real names work here.)
Niagara At Large 
Kudos to the Occupiers. This issue is not about money or sustainability. It is about political ideology.
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Six people visited the Ministers office for a little over an hour and Draper/Taliano call it an “occupation”. Beware my friends, they walk amongst us.
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21 groups across the province were involved. Sounds like a conspiracy. Beware the Senior Extremists. They may be linked to the Senior Radicals outfit. Radicals and Extremists are subverting our culture.
The senior sitting next to you could be a radical out to destroy your country.
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Dear Nick Strugar – If you take another look at the post above that you are referring to, the words occupation and occupy were placed in quotes and semi-quotes because that is what the network of unions and seniors groups across the province who organized same-day,same-time visits to 21 Conservative MP constituency offices this past February 9 called them – no the author of the story or, for that matter, Mr. Taliano.
Furthermore the six people you refer to were not alone in this effort to send a message to the MPs about seniors pensions. Their actions were supported by a majority of the many thousands of people they represent.
I would only add that it must be great to be so well off yourself that you can afford to mock or belittle othes who need government assistance in their senior years.
I have long felt that those who do not need such assistance or who take a libertarian or neo conservative view that governments should not be providing social services should offer to have their names removed from governent rolls for providing social assistance, health, drug and other benefits. Walk the walk by using for-provite private sector services that have to be paid for fully out of one’s own pocket. I can have alot more respect for that than taking benefits you don’t believe in and can afford to pay for on your own, than taking the benefits and at the same time taking verbal pokes at others who are fighting to keep them.
NAL publisher Doug Draper
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Right on, Doug … for at least asserting the same point I was about to make in a much more polite fashion than I was about to 😉
I am one that will not likely have any pensions to turn to when I am of age and will have no choice but to work until I am in the ground. As a self-employed person, even my payments from CPP will be very limited.
For more and more people under the age of 55, retirement is not going to be an option – period, unless one was willing to live out their “golden years” fighting for the specials in the cat food aisles in grocery stores to get the best balanced meal one can afford.
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Why would anyone have to do what you suggest when Mark Taliano has told us “It’s not about money”. The problem is that you people equate everything to your new favorite catchword “Occupy”. Guess what? This movement is not new. It has been going on for centuries. Students in local colleges can get more kids to occupy a Volkswagon than Occupy Niagara can get to occupy anything. Also, I do not mock or belittle those who need assistance. I have spent over 40 years as a community servant to to enhance the life of everyone from toddlers to seniors. I hope that yourself and Mark Taliano have done as much.
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Nick, this was not an action by Occupy Niagara. We have had very good attendance at our actions that we did sponsor in the last few months and will probably continue to do so.
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Let me be perfectly clear. I oppose the Harper pension proposals. They go against everything I believe in as to the safety net that should protect our senior citizens. What I am against is some of the methods that people use to object policies of any type that they oppose and claim to these so called new methods will bring results. The old catchword “Occupy” is one of these. I believe in the rule of law. If you don’t like the law then perhaps you should convince more than 35% of the people to “Occupy” the voting booths.
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Nick, I belong to Occupy and I DO vote, but I also believe we need voting reform, because the same idiotic politicians get in by lying to the people and then they steal from us so they can take care of their friends. I don’t respect any politician, but I do vote so I have a right to complain so there!
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Great job reporting the story and for bringing to light this very serious issue of ensuring the information on old age security and the proposed changes are discussed. We as citizens are obligated not just on election day but every day to ensure our representatives are actually speaking for us, not at us.
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Let me be perfectly clear. Complain all you want as long as you do it legally. If you have proof that they are stealing from you then use the law and have them charged. I highly doubt that you have the proof to support your rhetoric or you would have taken this route by now. The fact remains that people are not voting (35% turnouts). So there!
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The people who “occupied” the office. What laws are they breaking? I am sure you would think back when Rosa Parks sat at the front of the bus, she was breaking some law at the time. I think this is part of what we need in democracy. Many times, these things need to be challenged.
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