The United Steelworkers (USW) is putting it simply.
It supports the NDP.
Last week, Ironworkers announced its support for Christy Clark and the BC Liberals. A Lower Mainland news organization confused the two, something the Steelworker’s Western Director Steve Hunt says is frustrating.
“It takes a little bit of the wind out of you when you support as much as we do, for the reasons that we do, for somebody to make an error like that … we support the party that we best think supports working people and their families and communities, and we don’t see that in the BC Liberals.”
In a prepared statement, the USW ventured further by saying “in the interest of the health and safety of our members, we could never endorse the Christy Clark government. From botched WCB investigations to lax enforcement and cuts to WCB pensions, this government does not deserve our support.
“Steelworkers know the health and safety of miners will never be fully protected when the same ministry that is supposed to protect them is focused on promoting the industry and not regulating it.”
The basic difference between the two is the larger, steelworkers union creates the steel, then the ironworkers build with it.