Members of Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 798 voted to support the agreement which a mediator from BC Labour Relations Board helped negotiate over two days of mediation held on May 14 and 15. City council signed off on the agreement on Thursday, May 21.
“We are happy that CUPE has acknowledged council’s strategic priority of living within our means and has conceded any wage increases in the first three years of this contract,” said Mayor Dave Formosa. “This agreement is a fair settlement respecting the city’s commitment to taxpayers to contain operating costs, while still providing modest wage increases to employment conditions.”
The agreement, which retroactively covers from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2018, delivers a six per cent wage increase for all CUPE 798 members in the last three years of the contract.
“We have had a very tough round of bargaining and we are relieved that we have certainty and stability for the future,” said Danielle Craigen, local president, in a press release Thursday, May 21. “Members were very clear that the city’s aggressive concessions package was a deal breaker and we successfully pushed back on that package.”
The contract addresses some of the union’s longstanding issues which include: the implementation of joint job evaluations, fairness for part-time workers and protection of job security.
The agreement includes improvements to the contract language which clarify employment conditions and streamlines decision making. A unspecified number of part-time employees will be converted to full-time status and provisions for vacation have been adjusted to meet “industry norms.”
According to the city’s media release, the terms of the agreement provide cost certainty and labour relations stability for several years to come.
Despite the agreement, Craigen said that the union is still concerned that the city is not pursuing tax increases to keep up with rising operational costs.
“I don’t believe the citizens were asked which services they were prepared to see cut or that the city’s reserve funds depleted,” Craigen said. “With a zero per cent tax increase you’re not keeping up with inflation. Services are first thing to go or reserves are depleted.”
Craigen said that the union will continue to monitor the city’s service levels over the remainder of the agreement.
City of Powell River workers voted to approve a new agreement, avoiding a labour dispute and service disruption.
Members of Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 798 voted to support the agreement which a mediator from BC Labour Relations Board helped negotiate over two days of mediation held on May 14 and 15.
The agreement, which retroactively covers from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2018, addresses some of the union’s longstanding issues which include: job evaluations for those which have historically been undervalued, fairness for part-time workers and protection of job security.
“We have had a very tough round of bargaining and we are relieved that we have certainty and stability for the future,” said Danielle Craigen, Local 798 president, in a press release Thursday, May 21. “Members were very clear that the city’s aggressive concessions package was a deal breaker and we successfully pushed back on that package.”
Craigen said the union is still concerned about the service levels the city is providing and will continue to monitor the situation over the next few years.
The union represents close to 150 city workers who provide a variety of services in the city from maintenance and administration work to library services.
