The 36th Annual Convention for the Alberta Union of Public Employees is an historic one.

For the first time, the Premier was a guest speaker in Edmonton with more than 800 delegates and a thousand plus members attending.

AUPE President Guy Smith tells 660News the mood was good, especially because members got to hear from the premier.

“She connected with them, and that’s the important thing. When you build a positive working relationship, then you go into discussions on equal footing; I think that’s what members came away with hearing from Premier Redford speak” said Smith.

Smith notes it was a move of goodwill to have Redford make history.

“She wants to open up that dialogue. The other thing she said ‘those members on the front lines are the experts, and they have the ability to come up with the solutions to issues that might be out there’ and I think that was a really good message; that she recognizes the importance of our members to provide those services and the fact that they need to be heard and the way they’re heard is through their union” adds Smith.

The AUPE represents roughly 80,000 workers across the province, with 21,000 of those direct government workers.

The union confirms they’ll be sitting down with the government within the next year to hammer out a new contract.