Picket lines went up at all campuses of Vancouver Island University (VIU) at 6 am Tuesday, November 20, for a two-day labour action after talks between the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and six BC colleges and universities weren’t able to resolve the issue of wage increase. Three thousand CUPE support staff in BC colleges and universities have been without a contract for the past two and a half years.
VIU’s 260 support staff, including food service workers, clerical staff, facilities workers and library staff from all five campuses, are on strike. There are 12 CUPE members at VIU Powell River.
CUPE locals took strike votes and served their 72-hour strike notice on Friday, November 16. Camosun College, VIU, College of New Caledonia, College of the Rockies, North Island College and Vancouver Community College were all in a legal position to strike November 20.
The negotiations between VIU and its CUPE members are ongoing during the labour action.
For students at VIU this is the second time in less than three years that they have missed classes due to a strike and they are only a month away from final exams. The university has assured students that if the labour action is more than two days it may consider extending the semester to give students time to finish their coursework.
At issue is the BC government’s refusal to sign off on a new collective agreement. The last contract expired in 2010. All the CUPE locals say they have good relationships with their employers and that the stumbling block is the provincial government’s Public Sector Employers’ Council (PSEC) and ministry of advanced education.
CUPE local 1858, the local representing VIU support staff, echoed that sentiment saying it made progress negotiating on the local level, but the provincial government has stalled on wage negotiations.
“The issues are not with the administration of Vancouver Island University, we have dealt with all the issues that are local,” said Deborah Hopper, vice-president of CUPE local 1858. “The frustration comes from tabling a proposal and receiving no answer from the government.”
The union is trying to negotiate a four-year contract with a two per cent wage increase in 2012 and a two per cent wage increase in 2013.
CUPE officials said they’ve tried, over the past two years, to come to an agreement and recently had brought in a mediator, but they were told by the colleges and universities that, “they don’t have a mandate to bargain from the government.”
“We’re not asking for too much,” said Wanda Erikson, office manager at VIU Powell River. “A two per cent increase barely covers the increase in the costs of living.”
