Affiliations
No local
stands alone.
Local 397 represents sheet metal workers and roofers across Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario. Here are the councils, associations and agencies behind that work, and what each one actually does.
01
Building trades
Local 397 is an affiliate of the Northwestern Ontario Building Trades Council, the body representing the unionized construction trades across the region.
The Northwestern Ontario Building Trades Council brings together the building and construction trade unions working across Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario. It is one of eleven local building trades councils listed by the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, and Local 397's Business Manager, Daniel Krupa, serves as its president.
Above it sit the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario and, nationally, Canada's Building Trades Unions. Together they are how the trades speak with one voice on training standards, safety law, procurement and project agreements, rather than one local at a time.
The Council is a separate organization with its own officers and mandate. Local 397 is an affiliate of it, not a spokesperson for it.
02
Sheet metal councils
Local 397 is a chartered affiliate of SMART, and bargains through the Ontario Sheet Metal Workers' & Roofers' Conference.
Sheet Metal Workers & Roofers Local 397 is chartered by SMART, the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, and has been organized in the Lakehead since 1910.
Provincially, the local sits within the OSMWRC, the Ontario Sheet Metal Workers' & Roofers' Conference, which coordinates the Ontario sheet metal and roofing locals and bargains the provincial agreement on their behalf. Nationally, Canadian locals coordinate through the Canadian Conference of Sheet Metal Workers & Roofers.
03
Labour relations
Wages, benefits and working conditions come from the provincial ICI agreement with the employers' association, under the Thunder Bay appendix.
The provincial ICI sheet metal collective agreement is bargained between the OSMWRC and the employers' association, the Ontario Sheet Metal Contractors' Association (OSMCA). Local 397 falls under the Thunder Bay appendix, which carries the rates and conditions for this jurisdiction. A copy is held at the hall.
Apprenticeship and certification in Ontario are administered by Skilled Trades Ontario, and employment standards, health and safety law and labour relations sit with the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.
04
Training
In-school training at the OSMWTC in Oakville for sheet metal; the Thunder Bay Roofing Apprenticeship Council holds the roofing contracts.
Sheet Metal Worker is a compulsory trade in Ontario, trade code 308A. In-school instruction is delivered at the Ontario Sheet Metal Workers Training Centre (OSMWTC) in Oakville, a joint union and OSMCA training centre, and the apprenticeship leads to a Certificate of Qualification and the interprovincial Red Seal.
Flat and built-up roofing is a different path. It is a voluntary trade rather than a compulsory one, and the Thunder Bay Roofing Apprenticeship Council holds those apprenticeship contracts for this region.
Beyond the ticket, members upgrade through SMART's International Training Institute and through courses run at the hall.
05
Health & safety
Sector training through IHSA, workplace insurance through the WSIB, and SMART's own occupational health institute.
Health and safety training for Ontario construction runs through the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA), the designated sector association. Workplace injury and illness coverage is administered by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB).
SMART maintains its own occupational health arm, SMOHIT, covering the hazards specific to this trade, alongside confidential member assistance. National reference material comes from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety.
06
Straight answers
- What building trades council does Local 397 belong to?
- Sheet Metal Workers & Roofers Local 397 is an affiliate of the Northwestern Ontario Building Trades Council, which represents the unionized building and construction trades across Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario. It is one of eleven local councils listed by the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, and Local 397's Business Manager, Daniel Krupa, serves as its president.
- What is the Thunder Bay Roofing Apprenticeship Council?
- The Thunder Bay Roofing Apprenticeship Council holds the apprenticeship contracts for flat and built-up roofing in the Thunder Bay region. Roofing is a voluntary trade in Ontario, unlike sheet metal, which is compulsory under trade code 308A. Local 397 represents roofers across Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario.
- Who bargains the collective agreement for sheet metal workers in Thunder Bay?
- The provincial ICI sheet metal collective agreement is bargained between the OSMWRC (the Ontario Sheet Metal Workers' & Roofers' Conference) and the employers' association, the OSMCA (the Ontario Sheet Metal Contractors' Association). Local 397 falls under the Thunder Bay appendix, which sets the rates and conditions for this jurisdiction. A copy is held at the union hall.
- Is sheet metal a compulsory trade in Ontario?
- Yes. Sheet Metal Worker is a compulsory certified trade in Ontario under trade code 308A, so the work requires a valid Certificate of Qualification or registration as an apprentice. In-school training is delivered at the Ontario Sheet Metal Workers Training Centre (OSMWTC) in Oakville and the apprenticeship leads to a Certificate of Qualification and the interprovincial Red Seal. Flat and built-up roofing, by contrast, is a voluntary trade.
- Which health and safety bodies cover sheet metal workers in Northwestern Ontario?
- Sector health and safety training runs through the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association (IHSA), the designated association for Ontario construction. Workplace injury and illness coverage is administered by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB). SMART also maintains its own occupational health institute, SMOHIT, for hazards specific to the sheet metal trade.