Join your fellow Steelworkers for a week of learning and engagement to strengthen our union!

Register early to ensure a spot in your preferred course during our week-long educational seminars at the Living Water Resort from May 31 to June 5, 2026, at Bayview Wildwood Resort, Severn Bridge, Ont. Class size is limited. Please reach out to your local union leadership for approval before you register.

Registration and application deadline is April 30, 2026.

Courses offered:

Promoting Mental Health in the Workplace and in the Union

This course examines mental health as a crucial issue both in our workplaces and in our roles as members and activists in the union. At the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Identify negative attitudes towards mental health and the implications of stigma, both in the workplace and in the union

• Learn, understand and apply a legal framework related to mental disability

• Learn about the employer’s duty to accommodate and how to create an accommodation plan for mental disability

• Assess risk factors in the workplace using an adaptation of the National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace

• Determine the difference between mental health and mental illness

• Assess your own level of mental health and make a personal plan to maintain and improve mental health

• Consider the balance between mental health and union activism

• Draft a model Letter of Agreement related to mental health in the workplace

This workshop is important to all members concerned about mental health, and particularly activists who serve on joint health and safety committees and human rights committees.

Unionism on Turtle Island

Unionism on Turtle Island is aimed at non-Indigenous Steelworkers (but open to all members) where you will:

  • Learn more about our shared history as Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians
  • See how union struggles and Indigenous struggles connect
  • Discuss how individual members, locals, and our union as a whole can practise reconciliation
  • Learn from a local elder and ask any questions you might have about Indigenous cultures –
  • Help make your local more effective in bargaining for and representing Indigenous members

Strengthening Your Local: Duties, Financials, Public speaking and Conflict Resolution

Develop your leadership skills with this engaging course designed for union leaders, committee members, and union activists. You will deepen your understanding of how your local union operates, strengthen your communication skills, and gain practical tools to support respectful workplaces and effective financial practices. This course brings together the essential elements of strong union leadership to help you lead with confidence and inspire meaningful change.

Apply strategies that build strong, active, and engaged memberships

Strengthen your understanding of union structure

Clarify the roles and responsibilities of executive officers

Build confidence using your voice in meetings

Enhance communication and public speaking skills

Learn Robert’s Rules of Order

Identify and address issues involving harassment and discrimination

Understand key financial officer duties and accountability

APPLICATION FORM: Arbitration: Prepare and Present. – only 14 spots available

This is an application-based course. Once upon receiving your submission, you will receive an email notification confirming whether your application has been approved.

Arbitration – Prepare and Present

This course is designed for Union staff and Local Union officers/representatives who plan to present grievances at arbitration. The objective of the course is to prepare participants for every step of arbitration proceedings, including:

Conducting direct- and cross-examination

Developing a theory of the case

Gathering facts and preparing witnesses

Understanding the rules of evidence and procedure at hearings

Dealing with medical and other expert evidence

Presenting opening statements and final arguments

Application for Arbitration is closed.

Registration Form for Spring School Closed.

*ALL REGISTRATION ARE FINAL. FAILURE TO ATTEND SPRING SCHOOL WILL RESULT IN THE LOCAL BEING LIABLE FOR ALL FEES ASSOCIATED WITH SPRING SCHOOL.

Registration fee:
Cost Breakdown:

Please make cheque or money order payable to USW D6 Spring School

Single Occupancy: $2,200 per participant (limited availability)

Double Occupancy: $2,000 per participant (individual rooms shared living spaces)

Register online and send the registration fee to:
USW D6 Spring School
Attn: Heather Ross
300- 200 Ronson Drive
Etobicoke, ON M9W 3Z9

District 6 has scholarships available on a first-come, first served basis, with one scholarship per bargaining unit. Participants from Atlantic provinces will be eligible for an enhanced scholarship due to travel costs.