Mike Old retired from a long career in B.C.’s labour movement in 2023, having worked in both public and private sector unions including for more than 26 years at the Hospital Employees’ Union (HEU).

At HEU, he led an award-winning communications team, coordinated the research, education and government relations work of the union, and frequently acted as a media spokesperson on issues like collective bargaining, workers’ rights, COVID-19 and public health care reform.

In 2015, Mike joined the union’s senior management team and was assigned to support the work of its governing board on issues like strategic planning, constitutional reform and policy development.

In 2020, he was appointed as the union’s interim secretary-business manager and helped lead HEU for ten months through a global pandemic that put immense pressure on health care workers and the services they deliver. In this role, Mike was also the chief spokesperson for the multi-union Facilities Bargaining Association, the largest bargaining unit in B.C.’s formal public sector.

Since 2019, Mike has served as a trustee on the board of the Joint Facilities Benefit Trust, an Employee Life & Health Trust, delivering extended health, dental and long-term disability benefits as well as and group life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance to tens of thousands of B.C. health care workers and their dependents.

Mike graduated from the University of Calgary in 1985 with a Bachelor of Arts in Geography.