Uncategorized

Health care is complex. It can feel overwhelming. But Manitoba’s allied health care professionals are united by one focus: you.

When you need health care, you need highly trained and specialized experts at every step of the journey, from emergency response to diagnosis, treatment, rehab, and recovery. And across Manitoba, thousands of professionals are dedicated to delivering those services and the best health care possible — in hospitals, community settings, and at home.

MAHCP, the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals, represents over 7,000 members working to deliver the best care for Manitobans. From paramedics to physiotherapists, dieticians, mental health workers, and so many more, the union has grown to represent members working across 45 professions. And together, they are united in advocating for a healthier Manitoba and the solutions that will improve public health care for everyone.

But MAHCP faced a big challenge. Members decided that the union needed to raise its profile, strengthen its public image, build greater recognition, and improve communications both internally and externally to help support bargaining and advocacy efforts.

The goal? To make MAHCP a stronger, more prominent, and more influential voice for solutions that improve health care for all Manitobans.

At The NOW Group, we’re proud to help make it happen. As Canada’s leading creative agency for unions, non-profits, and public advocacy organizations, our team was ready to dive into the brief and deliver the collaborative branding process that the union needed to look its very best.

Our team partnered with MAHCP to refine, strengthen, and revitalize the union’s visual identity. With the right brand tools, we knew we could equip the union with a visual identity that’s both more user-friendly and more easily recognizable to members, the public, and decision-makers alike.

Working with designer Nancy Wu, our creative team helped guide MAHCP through an iterative process to discover a fresh look-and-feel that’s uniquely suited to the union and its objectives.

While the previous logo featured differing fonts and visual elements, the new logo emphasizes MAHCP’s unity of purpose that brings allied health care professionals together.

A prominent circle in the wordmark provides an easily recognizable symbol and a flexible graphic element. And it symbolizes the focus of MAHCP members on delivering the best health care at every patient touchpoint.

It also perfectly reflects MAHCP’s slogan: Our focus is you.

---

As a union, MAHCP is focused on bargaining and advocating for the well-being of its members. And as health care professionals, MAHCP members are always focused on patients, the people at the heart of health care.

Today, MAHCP has never looked better. With its new brand tools, the union is equipped with the unified and up-to-date brand identity it needs to advocate effectively and confidently for the solutions that will make health care better for patients – and make working conditions better for its members.

Thinking of a brand refresh for your union or non-profit organization? Say hello! We’d love to talk. And we’re always ready to help.

It’s been a challenging year for students, teachers, and parents across Saskatchewan. Families and educators have been working together to demand that the provincial government start investing in public schools—and do more to deliver the supports that students need to learn, grow, and reach their potential.  

With the provincial vote fast approaching, STF has seized the opportunity to ensure education is on voters’ minds this election—and to force political leaders of all parties to deliver for our kids and their public schools.

The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation’s new campaign has a powerful message:

The choices we make at the ballot box live with our kids for years to come.

The ad takes an unexpected and eye-catching approach to show a simple truth: elections matter, not just to us but to our kids.

When a government makes the wrong choices for students—by failing to properly invest in public education, cutting classroom supports, and ignoring the calls of parents and teachers to provide the resources that students need—our kids pay the price.

Launching province-wide on digital, social, Connected TV, and broadcast channels, the new ads put the spotlight on the impacts that government cuts are having on Saskatchewan’s kids. And the power of voters to demand change.

The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation is the leading voice for great public schools in every corner of the province, advocating for public education as a common good and the universal right of all children and youth. STF represents over 13,500 teachers working in pre-kindergarten through Grade 12 in communities across Saskatchewan.

In 2023, CUPE BC launched a fresh digital campaign to build public support for Seamless Childcare Now. And this month, the Government of BC has announced it’s moving forward on the plan—with a new pilot project for fully-integrated before- and after-school child care options at BC public schools.

It’s great news for parents and kids across the province.

We all know what a struggle it is to find child care. And, once you’ve got it, how difficult it can be to navigate that hectic daily routine.

That’s why CUPE BC, the largest union in British Columbia, has been campaigning for better public childcare for years. And Seamless Childcare is one of the best ways to make life easier for parents, while making use of the existing school space, resources, and trained staff at BC’s public schools.

On May 16, the Government announced that a pilot project will start this fall at school districts in Chilliwack, Nanaimo-Ladysmith, and Nechako Lakes.

Instead of letting classrooms sit empty before- and after-school, the new program will see Education Assistants, Early Childhood Educators, and other trained support staff provide learning and care for children in school classrooms.

It’s a practical solution—and a big relief for parents. The plan means more work for school support staff, more childcare options for parents, fewer pickups and drop-offs for families throughout the day, and the confidence of knowing that your kids are getting the care they need, at school, all day long.

If implemented across the province, Seamless Childcare could create thousands of new spaces for school-aged childcare without building a single new facility.

At The NOW Group, we love building fresh and engaging digital campaigns that connect with parents, and help build support for the public services that make life better for people. And every day, we work with our clients to support and improve public education for millions of kids across Canada.

Want to talk about new tools for your next digital campaign? Reach out here or give us a call. Our team is ready to help!

Applications are now closed for the 2024 scholarship.

---

We’re proud to announce that applications are now open for The Ian Reid Scholarship! This new award was established in collaboration with the Douglas Coldwell Layton Foundation for Social Democracy and Paul Degenstein—our beloved former Senior Partner and Chief Creative Officer—in memory of Paul’s late husband, Ian Reid, and in celebration of his lifelong commitment to making life better for Canadians.

Established earlier this year, The Ian Reid Scholarship will be awarded annually to students committed to working in politics to promote the values and goals of social democracy. It is intended specifically for those pursuing careers in political research, strategy, and communications.

The scholarship also recognizes the role of 2SLGBTQ+ people in the social democratic movement. And it seeks to encourage greater racial, cultural, economic and gender inclusion around the decision-making table—to create public policy that better meets the needs and aspirations of everyone.

With annual prizes of $1,500 and $1,000, the new scholarship is open to students from any Canadian public post-secondary institution enrolled in an undergraduate degree. Find full eligibility details here. Applications are due by June 23, 2024.

The Douglas Coldwell Layton Foundation for Social Democracy is proud to have been chosen by Ian’s dearest friends and family to be the home for this scholarship in his memory.

About Ian Reid 

Ian Reid spent his political career supporting and advising social democratic leaders and the New Democratic Party. Ian believed in the necessity of political work and the potential of social democracy as a force for good. He believed that listening and learning from people was the starting point in making positive change. He was a passionate advocate for using research as an instrument to do that and to develop messages that speak to people’s hearts and minds. His goal was to elect progressive governments and put in place policies that make a difference in people’s lives.

For many years, Ian was the Head of Opinion Research for the NDP government in British Columbia. In that role and others, he was one of Canada’s most brilliant research experts. He was able to cut through the noise, identify trends, and draw insights from what he heard. He made research useable for campaigners, communicators, and policy-makers—so that we could better connect with our audiences, speak to their aspirations, shape policy and meet their needs.

As a political researcher, Ian was also a pioneer. He humanized the demographic groupings in polling. Long before it became a standard practice, he had campaigns put names and faces to people within those groupings, and discuss the daily challenges those diverse individuals face, to strengthen our understanding of where they’re coming from and what they’re looking for.

Ian continued his work through 12 years of a terminal illness, serving at the end of his career as Chief of Staff to Carole James. He died in 2014 at age 58. His three children—Jordan, Shamus, and Alexis—carry forward his work in politics, advocacy, and government.