About Local 2003E
Originally known as the Canadian Union of Operating Engineers and General Workers Labour Union (CUOE), which represented members from Kingston, Ontario to Windsor, Ontario. CUOE was originally formed by a group of dissatisfied Canadian workers who no longer wanted an American influence on Canadian unions, making CUOE one of the first Labour Unions to sever themselves from an international parent Union. Located in Ontario and servicing its Ontario members, CUOE prided itself on being entirely Canadian, while governing on a grass-roots basis.
In September of 2003, CUOE merged with the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP) and became CEP Local 2003 – one of the largest composite CEP Locals in Ontario and in Canada. CEP was also affiliated with the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), and represented workers in various sectors from coast to coast.
CEP was formed in 1992 through a merger of three large Unions; the Canadian Paperworkers Union (CPU), the Communications and Electrical Workers of Canada Union (ECWU), and the Energy and Chemical Workers Union (CWC). They grew steadily, organizing members in virtually every sector of the economy, which included being Canada’s largest media Union. CEP had about 162,000 members.
On September 1st, 2013, CEP and CAW, through mutual agreement, created a brand new Union named Unifor. We became Unifor 2003E at that time and continue to serve our membership.
Unifor represents more than 310,000 members that work in nearly every industry in the private and public sectors, and maintains close connections with members who have retired. No union offers such a diverse range of perspectives and experiences across our national industries and across local communities. There are 750 local unions operating under the Unifor banner.
The National Unifor website site can be visited by clicking on the link below.