Notice of Motion #1:  Moved by John Grimshaw:

            Whereas:  Local 105 has achieved many successes in assisting Labour friendly politicians to get elected, and

            Whereas:  we must continue to support these politicians to ensure our voice is heard in all levels of government,

            Therefore be it resolved:  That Local 105 set aside $25,000.00 for political action to support those candidates that are labour friendly, and

            Be it further resolved:  That the money will come from the Strike Fund and shall only be distributed by authority of the Political Action Committee.

 Notice of Motion #2: Moved by John Grimshaw:

            Whereas: Local 105 has engaged in an effective Organizing Program for the past six  years which has seen several non-union contractor certification applications making them union contractors, and

            Whereas: This success and future successes hinge on the efforts of a full time organizing strategy, and

            Whereas: There is much work to do if we are to unionize the majority of our industry to ensure our future,

            Therefore be it resolved: That Local 105 renew its commitment to organize the non-union contractors in our area and their employees, and

            Be it further resolved: That funding be provided from the Local 105 Market Recovery Fund to finance our organizing initiatives for a period of 1 year. This funding shall be for wages and expenses for organizing, advertising, promotion and other related expenses.

Reminders

#1 --Annual H & W Meeting: 

Wednesday, March 3^rd, 2010

 685 Nebo Road, Hannon, Ontario

Time:  7:00 p.m.

Notices of Motions included in last newsletter will be discussed and voted upon.

 #2 --The Annual Pension Trustees Meeting

will be held on  March 3rd, 2010,

 at  8:30 p.m. immediately following

 the Health and Welfare Annual Meeting.

There are no motions from the Trustees to be dealt with. There will be elections for two Trustees as the term has expired for Brothers Vic Prohaska and Jack Marrone.   On behalf of the members of Local 105, I would like to thank Brothers Vic Prohaska and Jack Marrone for their three-year term served and their dedication and professionalism displayed throughout their tenure.

Tax Receipts included in Newsletter

This year you will be receiving one T4A, which includes all income that is to be recorded on line 104.  There will be a breakdown of the different amounts included in the total amount for your information on your copy of the T4A.  We hope this will make filing your return somewhat easier.  Please find below a description of the tax receipts, which are included in this newsletter as well as a chart advising you where each receipt should be recorded on your tax return.  Please refer to the newsletter when you are completing your tax return.  Also, please ensure this information is made available to anyone completing your tax return, i.e. H & R Block, etc.   If they are still not certain where to record the tax receipts, please have them call the union office.

Amounts that may be included on your T4A:

RRSP:  Your T4A slip will include the amount of RRSP contributions you made to your plan from the period January 2009 to December 2009 which represents the hours you worked from December 2008 to November 2009. This amount will be listed under RSP Contributions in the breakdown of the funds on your T4A.

Health and Welfare Refunds are listed under HW Refunds if you received a refund in the year 2009.  Members who had in excess of one year's premiums in their H & W account were given the option of transferring the amount to their RRSP or receiving a cheque for the excess funds.  In either case, as this money was not taxed at source, a T4A must be issued for the amount received or transferred to the RRSP.  If the amount of your refund was under $500, it is not necessary for us to issue a T4A; however, it is your responsibility to include the amount as other income on your 2009 tax return.  Members who transferred the amount to their RRSP will have the amount included in the London Life RRSP deduction slip.

Life Insurance Premiums.  A change to the income tax act was made effective July 1st, 1994 that made all life insurance premiums a taxable benefit.  Therefore, the amount of Life Insurance Premiums that were paid on your behalf for the year will be included in your T4A.   The amount is indicated under the heading Life Insurance on your T4A.

Pension Adjustment (Box 34).  Members who worked out of town in Canada in the year 2009 and had contributions made to the pension plan should receive a T4 from their employer including the pension adjustment amount in Box 34.  Members who worked out of town in the U.S. will receive a T4A from Local 105 recording the amount of your pension adjustment.  Members who had contributions made to the pension plan as a result of Bill 162, WCB, will have the amount recorded in Box 34 on their T4A and listed under Pension on their member copy.  This indicates that you contributed to a pension plan and the amount will be used to determine your 2010 RRSP maximum.  It will not affect your RRSP maximum for 2009.  The amount on the T4A for Pension Adjustment is recorded on line 206 of your tax return.  If you worked in town, please check the T4 you receive from your employer to ensure they have not included any amounts in Box 34 Pension Adjustment or Box 36 Pension Plan Registration No.  If amounts have been included on your T4, contact the office and we will have your T4 corrected.

RRSP Deduction Slips:  You will also find your RRSP deduction slip from London Life for the period March to Dec. 2009. This amount should be recorded on line 208.  This slip represents monies earned from February 2009 to November 2009.

Include All Tax Receipts on Your Return - Especially Any T4A's You Receive

Here is an example of a missing T4A slip recording income of $2,731.00 that was not included in a fictitious person’s income tax.    Revenue Canada states:  “That every person who fails to report an amount required to be included in income, and who has failed to report such amount on a return for any of the three preceding taxation years, is liable to both a federal and a provincial/territorial penalty each equal to 10% of the amount that must be included in income”.  In this case, a federal penalty of $273.10 and a provincial/territorial penalty of $273.10 was assessed for repeatedly failing to report income.  Also, there was interest of $82.71 charged.   In summary, this person inadvertently omitted recording income two years in a row.  So in addition to the added tax that was required, a penalty adding up to $628.91 was charged.  This penalty was for a first time offence.  If a second or subsequent offence occurs, the penalty can be 50% of the omitted income.   This was an example of a T4A with a few thousand dollars.  Imagine if someone missed a T4A recording $10,000 or more of income.  It would be a very expensive penalty to say the least!!  If you or your tax preparer is not sure what to do with your T4A slip, please call the union office.  Or in the event you did not receive a T4A slip and you were expecting one, call the office to make sure it was not inadvertently missed.  Revenue Canada will not even consider waiving the penalty if you claim that you did not receive the T4A slip!!  Please be aware of your obligations when it comes to reporting taxable income.

Campaigning & Demonstrations Income

Members who received income for campaigning and attending demonstrations will not receive a T4A, as we are not required to issue a T4A if the amount is under $500.  However, it is your responsibility to include the amount as other income on your 2009 tax return.

IMPORTANT

Additional Notice of Motion

To be voted on at the

March 23^rd, 2010 Regular Membership Meeting:

Notice of Motion #3 – To Amend the Local 105 By-laws - Moved by Brother Ted Nelligan:

Whereas:  The Trade of Construction Maintenance Electrician is a Certified Trade within the Province of Ontario, and

Whereas:  A copy of a current Certificate of Qualification is required for all Journeyman applications to be accepted by the Union Hall, and

Whereas:  Article IV of the Local 105 By-laws state, “It is the duty of the Executive Board to investigate all applications for membership and submit its report to the Local Union for action in accordance with Article XX of the IBEW Constitution.”, and

Whereas:  The duties of the Examining Board are redundant with the duties of the Executive Board,

Therefore, let it be resolved that the following Articles and Sections be removed from the Local 105 By-laws:

          ●       Article III – Officers – Elections – Duties; Sec. 7

          ●       Article V - Examining Board in its entirety

          ●       Article VII – Salaries; Sec. 1:  Line reading Examining Board members each $50 month

Tax Information Continued......

Members Who Withdrew Funds from their RRSP in 2009

If you withdrew from London Life, your T4RSP will be mailed directly to you by the end of February.  This slip will indicate the amount of money you withdrew from your RRSP as well as the amount of taxes withheld.  The withdrawal amount should be entered on line 129 & the amount of taxes should be entered on line 437. 

2009 Union Dues Tax Receipt

Your 2009 tax receipt for your union dues should be included in this newsletter.  As the working union dues are no longer taxable at source, your receipt will only include the I.O. and basic portions of your union dues.  As we are now on computer, the tax receipts will be issued based on the dues you paid in the year 2009.  Please see below for examples.  The amount on your receipt should be recorded on line 212 of your tax return. Members who paid the $15.00 working assessment will find the amount included on the slip.  Please check your T4 from your employer to make sure they have not included a union dues amount on your T4.  If there is an amount in Box 44 for union dues on your T4, this will delay your return.  Please contact the union office and we will have the situation corrected.  Below are a few examples of how the union dues will now be receipted.   Before calling the union office to report a discrepancy, please check the amount you actually paid in the year 2009 for your dues and not the months that were covered.

IMPORTANT - TAX RETURN RULE REGARDING RRSPS

In 1994 a change was made regarding RRSP contributions and how they are recorded when completing your tax return.  Members are reminded that you must now complete a schedule 7 for your RRSPs and include the amount and receipts for contributions you made to your RRSP for the period Jan/Feb 2010 (line 245 of Schedule 7) when completing your 2009 tax return.  As you are no doubt aware, these receipts are not issued until the end of March 2010.  In order to expedite the processing of your 2009 return, you may forward your return without the Jan/Feb 2010 receipt.  However, once you receive your Jan/Feb 2010 receipt, it should be forwarded to Revenue Canada along with the 2009 Schedule 7 to advise them of the amount you will use as a deduction for your 2010 taxes. The other alternative is that you may simply wait for the Jan/Feb 2010 receipt and use it as a deduction on your 2009 return.  Then you will not encounter any problems with this procedure.  However, in choosing this method, be aware that the 2009 T4A income slip and the RRSP deductions slips for 2009 will not cancel each other out with regards to the RRSP.   If you happen to be out of work for the Dec/Jan 2010 period, you may have a large RRSP deduction on your 2009 income and then no deduction to offset your 2010 income.  If you have questions in this regard, please call the office.

Please Include All Tax Receipts You Receive When Doing Your Taxes: 

(Especially Your Income Slips i.e. T4's, T4A's, T4RSP's)

Tax Information                                             Include in Your Income Tax Return on Line

Amount in Box 28 on your T4A                                                               104

Amount in Box 34 (Pension Adjustment)                                               206

(Only if you worked out of town)

London Life RRSP Tax Receipt                                                             208

2009 Union Dues Tax Deduction Receipt                                             212

The following will be mailed to you separately:

T4RSP (Only if you withdrew your RRSP from London Life)               129 and line 437 for the taxes withheld

In Memoriam

We are saddened to report the death of Brother John Volmer, a communications member of Local 105.    Brother Volmer was a member with the IBEW for 5 years.     Our deepest sympathies are extended to his wife, Leann, his family and all who had the opportunity to know and work with him.

Our Brother will be deeply missed but not forgotten.

Local 105 Retirees Breakfast

Reminder of the Retirees Breakfast to honour all the members who retired in 2009 on Sunday, April 11th, 2010, at The Renaissance Banquet Centre located at 2239 Barton St. E. Hamilton.  The breakfast will commence at 11:00 a.m. sharp. Tickets are $12.00 per person.  Please call the union office if you wish to attend.   Tickets are not available at the door.   Please note:  Tickets must be reserved/purchased by March 31^st, 2010.

Retired from Local Union 105:  Ray Adams, Doug Blaylock, Vince Bregnocchi, James Brown, Daniel Butt, James Calder, Robert Carter, Cam D’Angelo, Drew Davidson, Ron Davis, George Donner, Dave Ellison, Mike Flynn, Randy Fries, Alexander Fulton, Robert Haynes, James Lennox, Keith Morley, Patrick J. Neill, Anthony Pollice, Mauro Tomasin, Jack Tompkins, and Andras Vencel.

Retired from the IBEW:  John Carlson, Les Cserti, Paul Fricker, John Jennie, Paul Moffatt, John Morrison,  Ken Taylor and Andrew Watson.

Local 105 Training Centre Update

Night School Classes

Fire Alarm Level 2                                               Mar  1^st, 2010    6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.  Monday/Wednesday

Solar Training                                                      Mar 8th, 2010   6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.  Monday/Wednesday

Conduit Bending                                                June 2010

Please call Clarke Hurley at 905 679-8880 to book a seat.

CSAO Day Programs

You must call CSAO three weeks prior to start date to book these programs:  1- 800-781-2726

Basics of Supervising                                          March 2^nd, 3^rd &  4th   8:30am

Lock Out- Tag Out                                                 March 9th                       8:30am

Trade School :  Reminder you must pay for trade school when you get your notice to attend.  Bring your paid receipt to the hall.  Books will be handed out the 1^st  & 2^nd  day of school at Mohawk in the cafeteria from 10:00 a.m. until noon.

   * Apprentices must REQUEST YOUR TRANSCRIPT from the college.  The college does not automatically mail out transcripts any longer.

**Apprentices are reminded to apply for the $1000 grant when they complete Basic or Intermediate Trade School.  Go to the website:   www.servicecanada.gc.ca/en/goc/apprenticeship for information and application.

***NEW  “Apprentice Completion Grant” of  $2,000 when an apprentice completes all trade school & successfully writes the C of Q.  This is retro to January 2009.  See above web site to apply.