Public strike notice from City of Castlegar

PUBLIC NOTICE V – RE CUPE STRIKE

The City wishes to advise Castlegar residents that City facilities remain open and City non-union staff will endeavor to provide prompt service to residents, businesses and visitors during the current labour strike. Your understanding and patience is appreciated.

What’s Going On?

The City has bargained in good faith for over a year and a half in over a dozen bargaining sessions and twice with an independent Mediator as requested by the Union. The City accepted the fair and respectful recommendations of the Mediator for a 6.14% wage increase over 4 years, no concessions and superior benefits in the municipal sector. The City agreed to this fair and reasonable proposal but the Union rejected it and proceeded to strike action. If the Union accepted the Mediator’s recommendations, the strike would be over and unionized employees would be back at work.

UNION STRIKE ISSUE: MORE JOB SECURITY LANGUAGE IN THE COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT

The Union already has superior language in the collective agreement to protect against contracting-out of work and job loss.

Nevertheless, the Union is seeking further “job security” language in the collective agreement to restrict management’s ability to handle any bargaining unit work. The City does not recognize this as a live issue as management does not seek to do bargaining unit work. It is neither economical nor practical for higher paid managers to do unionized work.

However, in an effort to allay the Union’s concerns, the City agreed to have the mediator read a binding commitment from the City into the record stating that unionized employees would not lose an hour of regular work to management.

The City is not prepared to put this language into the collective agreement as it would open it up to the grievance procedure which has been woefully abused by the Union at the taxpayer’s expense for too long.

UNION NON-STRIKE ISSUE: JOB LOSS OVER TIME

While the Union has been broadcasting “job loss over time” as a union concern, the statistics do not support this claim. There has been virtually no change in staffing levels in the past twenty years.