Labour Day picnic or, blue collared fun

Terry O'Conner of the North Bay District Labour Council.

Nothing but blue skies welcomed the 3rd Annual Nipissing District Labour Council’s ‘Labour Day Picnic’ held at the Kiwanis Band shell at King's Landing.

“This is more of a celebration than just a picnic,” Terry O'Conner of the North Bay Labour Council said.

He said the union as well as several community merchants helped cover the cost of the entirely free event. In addition, approximately 20 people volunteered their services.

“We were fortunate to have the support of volunteers and businesses for this event; Apollo Gymnastics is here and so is Science North. M&M Meats is cooking up free hotdogs and hamburgers and serving cold pop to all visitors,” O’Conner said.

Officials say Labour Day is the day to celebrate everything the working man has accomplished. From workplace safety to pensions, medi-care and so much more, none of it would have been established or upheld without the labour movement.

“Labour Day is a day to be thankful for the accomplishments of those before us. We still face fair wage issues and unemployment, but we’re also dealing more and more with globalization due to low wage standards in other countries.”

“There is a lot of work to do to ensure labour rights for everyone in the country,” O’Conner said.

He said there will be no speeches or anything pertaining to the labour movement, it is simply a day to have fun with family and friends.

Country music singer - song writer Harley Renaud performed at 1pm to a crowd of over 200 people.