Labour Minister to attend Atlantic Ministers of Labour Meeting

Labour Minister Anna Thistle advises that she will be in Halifax, Nova Scotia on Friday, March 16, to attend the Atlantic Ministers of Labour Meeting.

"I�m looking at this as an excellent opportunity to meet with my counterparts from the other Atlantic provinces to discuss mutual issues of common concern as they relate to labour relations and labour standards," said Minister Thistle.

The Halifax meeting will also provide an opportunity to learn about the operation of workers� compensation programs in other Atlantic provinces. "The workers� compensation system in this province is facing serious challenges, and it will be interesting to learn how other provinces are dealing with similar issues," said the minister.

In addition to a discussion on these issues, Minister Thistle will be providing an update to her counterparts on the status of an initiative to achieve greater priority for the protection of employee wages in the event of a bankruptcy. This issue was raised by her predecessor at a ministers of labour meeting in February 2000, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. "I look forward to working with my colleagues in the other jurisdictions to advance this issue at the federal level."

Media contact: Kathy Dicks-Peyton, Communications, (709) 729-1741.

2001 03 15                          4:40 p.m.