Moist first joined the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) as a teenager in 1975, working first as a lifeguard, then as a greenhouse attendant for the City of Winnipeg.[1][4] He was elected to his local executive after university and worked as a CUPE staff representative from 1983 to 1993.[citation needed]
Moist served for 10 years as the president of CUPE Local 500, representing Winnipeg municipal workers. He also served for six years as president of CUPE Manitoba.[5]
Moist became the first western Canadian elected to lead CUPE's 600,000 members in October 2003.[4] Under Moist's leadership, CUPE focused on branding itself as a community union, advocating for the new deal for cities, and playing roles in the defense of public health care, the fight for public, quality, child care, and in resisting attempts to privatize water and electricity services across the country.[2]
↑Moist, Paul (March 29, 2011). "Why am I a New Democrat?". Paul's Page. Canadian Union of Public Employees. Retrieved July 24, 2012. ... I have spent my entire adult life as [an NDP] member, a constituency association president, a convention delegate and I guess in short, an active social democrat.
12Seguin, Rheal (October 30, 2003). "In a first, Westerner is elected president of CUPE". The Globe and Mail. p.A12.
↑Dougherty, Kevin (October 28, 2003). "CUPE head lashes out: Outgoing president blasts 'right-wing' agendas". Montreal Gazette. p.A15.