UPDATED May 27 at 2:15 p.m.
Several busloads of United Steelworkers members and their supporters were in Ottawa May 26 and 27, calling on MPs to support changes to the Investment Canada Act aimed at preserving Canadian resources and jobs.
A press release put out by the Steelworkers said most of the participants will be from Sudbury, where members of Steelworkers Local 6500 have been on strike against Vale Inco for more than 10 months.
Steelworkers are also on strike against Vale Inco in Port Colborne, Ont. and Voisey Bay, Nfld.
A candlelight vigil took place on Wellington Street May 26, and a rally on Parliament Hill May 27 at 11:30 a.m. will focus on the effects of foreign control of manufacturing, the petroleum industry, chemicals and chemical products, minerals, technology, food processing and packaging, retail and more, the press release stated.
At the same time, a group of rank-and-file lobbyists took time to speak directly to MPs, asking them to work toward reform of the Investment Canada Act, based on a motion, introduced by Nickel Belt MP Claude Gravelle, and passed by a majority of MPs in the House of Commons in April.
Speakers will include NDP Leader Jack Layton, Canadian Labour Congress executive vice president Barbara Byers, Liberal MP Todd Russell, Bloc Québécois Labour Critic Luc Desnoyers (Rivière-des-Mille-Îles), the press release stated.
