The International Labour Council, which has been connecting Canadian and American union activists for 50 years, will meet in the Twin Cities July 11-13.

?It?s a like bunch a unions getting together to discuss common problems and solutions,? said Earl Hamilton, who is president of the council. Hamilton, though retired, remains an executive board member of SEIU Local 284.

?To me, it?s a worthwhile thing for people to keep in contact with their next-door neighbors,? he said. ?We have a lot of common problems and we can learn a lot from each other.

?I credit the Canadians with showing the Americans a little bit of militancy. Their labor force is where we would like to be,? he said, noting that 33 percent of Canadian workers are represented by a union, compared with slightly more than 13 percent in the United States.

The International Labour Council?s annual meeting is held in a different location each year: one year in the U.S., the next year in Canada. Though meetings have been held elsewhere in Minnesota ? including Duluth, Hibbing and International Falls ? this is the first time the council will meet in the Twin Cities in more than a decade, Hamilton said.

Union members can attend if their locals are affiliated with the council. Affiliation is only $25 a year; Hamilton said all locals affiliated with the St. Paul and Minneapolis central labor bodies should have received affiliation forms and registration information about the conference.

The conference will be at the Thunderbird Hotel in Bloomington; this year?s theme is ?Peace, Your Union and You,? Hamilton said. The conference fee is $50, which includes meals on Saturday and breakfast on Sunday.

Adapted from The Union Advocate, the official newspaper of the St. Paul Trades and Labor Assembly.