The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, the international union to which the Society is affiliated, held its bi-annual convention in August. The Society sent a significant delegation of members to represent our local at the virtual event.
With IFPTE President Paul Shearon having announced his retirement before the convention, elections were held for the top leadership positions. The Society was pleased to see Matthew Biggs elected President and Gay Henson elected as Secretary-Treasurer. Biggs had previously served as Secretary-Treasurer and as the leader of the IFPTE’s government relations program. Prior to joining IFPTE, Biggs worked on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, as a legislative assistant. Henson had served as the president of IFPTE Local 1937, representing engineers at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s nuclear facilities.
“We look forward to continuing to work closely with our international colleagues for the betterment of our union and our members,” said Society President Michelle Johnston. “Matt Biggs has been a friend to the Society for many years and I know he will serve us well as International President.”
In addition to the election, several resolutions brought forward by the Society were passed at the convention:
- Resolution 5: The creation of a working group to pursue issues related to access to justice.
- Resolution 6: A call to federal, state and provincial governments to reduce carbon emissions and to set a path towards net-zero carbon emissions.
- Resolution 10: A call to the Canadian government to fully implement the 94 Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action.
For a full recap of the 60th convention, including video of key speeches, visit the IFPTE web site: https://www.ifpte.org/news/convention-recap-ifpte-60th.
