As the end of 2024 approaches, like many others, I reflect on the challenges and the joys of the last 12 months.

On a global scale, we witnessed a deplorable targeting of media workers in conflict zones, and restrictions placed on media-workers from around the world keeping them from doing their jobs and reporting the reality of the situation.

We went into 2024 worried about the future of our CBC/Radio-Canada members who were in the middle of a bargaining round and who were told hundreds of layoffs were on the horizon.

Canada’s public broadcaster is at the mercy of the federal budget and year after year it must wait to hear what the politicians on the hill have decided to plan the next 12 months. CBC/Radio-Canada is saddled with this financial model that is constantly distracting it from concentrating on the mandate it was given by Canadians. 

We’ve witnessed a loss of Canadian media coverage in parts of the country that are not profitable enough for privately owned media to have a presence. The spread of Canadian media deserts means more Canadians don’t have access to their local news, and their stories are less likely to reach Canadians in the rest of the country. As technology advances and changes how we interact with news and media, it is now more necessary than ever for people to continue having access to quality Canadian media. A healthy Canadian media ecosystem is essential to our democracy and freedom of expression. A publicly funded broadcaster is one way to continue making news accessible for all Canadians.

CMG members don’t only work at the CBC/Radio-Canada, they also work for more than a dozen other employers: APTN, Canadian Press, Agence France Presse, Thomson Reuter, TVO, TFO, Vice, Canada’s National Observer, BuzzFeed, Zoomer Media, CKOF, Islington Press, and Pagemasters. Together we stand in solidarity, the larger branches supporting the smaller ones as we create a healthy Canadian media ecosystem that supports the identity and democracy of Canadians.

Together, we are also able to advocate for our rights as workers and media professionals who provide an integral service to Canadians. We need to work together as union members and as members of the communities we belong to and bring this message to all politicians. The CMG has received a grant from its parent union, Communication Workers of America, to support us in this work. 

In the last couple of months, I have been bringing this message to politicians in Ottawa. I brought the CMG’s message to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage and to the Senate Transportation and Communication Committee.

I also met with politicians from various parties during the Canadian Labour Congress Lobby Day on the Hill.

2025 promises to be an eventful and pivotal year for the media industry in Canada on many fronts and the CMG will be at the forefront participating in redefining the media ecosystem. Many of our branches will enter bargaining; a key time to improve working conditions.

I look forward to meeting many of you at our 2025 Bi-annual CMG Convention scheduled for May 27 and 28 at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel situated at the Toronto International Airport. If you are interested in attending, reach out to your Branch executive committee or, for our members at CBC/Radio-Canada and Canadian Press, your Location Executive Committee.

I am always available for members and welcome invitations from Branches and locations to meet with you.

The holiday season is upon us. It is the time to celebrate special religious days or simply to spend happy moments with family and friends. For a lot of media workers, it is also a time when they are still on the job bringing the news to Canadians as others celebrate.

To all of you, I wish peace, rest and relaxation as 2024 ends and better work life balance in 2025. We love our work, but we work to live, we don’t live to work.

In solidarity,

Annick R. Forest,

President / Présidente
Canadian Media Guild / Guilde canadienne des médias
president@cmg.ca