Our History
In 1988 our Founder Gabriel Chauvin, was a union member who found himself in need of help, but the options were very limited. Gabriel decided this was not good enough for his fellow union members. Gabriel went back to college from 1991-1995 and obtained his diploma in Social Work and a certificate in Addiction Counselling. In 1996 Gabriel started the Member Assistance Program, to provide better service to union members. During the start up phase of the M.A.P., Gabriel was a lone counsellor working out of his home, providing support to just three locals, in the Ottawa / Gatineau area. In the beginning the focus and services were for the most part, geared to substance abuse.
Today, Gabriel has since retired but not before growing the program from 3 locals in Ottawa / Gatineau, to 24 locals across Ontario, and we are still growing! Gabriel went from being a lone counsellor to building and managing a network of psychotherapists across Ontario.
In the beginning, the Members Assistance Program was focused on assisting the union members in overcoming substance misuse and abuse. Over time additional services were added to meet the needs of our members.
