Military daycare first to unionize / GM, Unifor ink new deal / Diplomats win at labour board
Edmonton military daycare becomes first to unionize
EDMONTON — A military daycare in Edmonton has become the first Canadian Forces daycare in the country to unionize.
Workers at the Edmonton Garrison Military Family Resource Society voted to join the ranks of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) union on Sept. 16.
Concerns over wage parity with other jobs in a similar field prompted the move, according to CUPE Alberta’s president, Marle Roberts.
"They are accredited child care workers, and they want to be paid as such," Roberts said. "As the largest union in Canada, CUPE can offer these workers the best research, bargaining, and labour relations assistance they can get."
GM, Unifor sign deal
INGERSOLL, Ont. — Employees at the General Motors assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ont., ratified a new collective agreement over the weekend.
Signed between about 2,700 production and skilled trades workers at the GM plant (also known as CAMI) and Unifor Local 88, the new deal comes with a $3,000 signing bonus and lump sum payments of $2,000 for each of the next three years. As well, provisions in the collective agreement will protect pension benefits for both current employees and retirees.
Of note is that the deal eliminates the supplemental workforce employment program. That means hundreds of temporary workers will be provided with permanent full-time jobs.
As well, new hires will be part of a defined contribution (DC) pension plan — something the union said it will continue to fight against, and instead advocate for a defined benefit (DB) plan for all workers.
"We’ve crafted an agreement that creates a much-needed sense of job and income security for our members and their families," said Mike Van Boekel, Unifor’s chairperson at the GM plant. "We’re going to redouble our efforts to improve pensions for all workers, and will continue to push aggressively for a defined benefit plan in future rounds of talks."
Labour board sides with striking diplomats
OTTAWA — The labour relations board has sided with Canada’s striking foreign diplomats, saying the government did not come to the bargaining table in good faith.
On Sept. 13, the Public Service Labour Relations Board (PSLRB) ruled in favour of the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO), arguing the Treasury Board violated its obligation to bargain in good-faith with its diplomats.
In its decision, the labour board said the federal government did not make every reasonable effort to enter into a collective agreement. The union representing foreign diplomats lauded the decision and called on the Treasury Board to resume negotiations.
"Today’s decision shows it is time for the Prime Minister and the government to do the responsible thing and reach a negotiated settlement which would put an end to this damaging strike," said Tim Edwards, PAFSO’s president. "The severe and mounting impacts this strike (is having) on the Canadian economy could have been avoided if the government had acted in good faith and engaged in free and fair bargaining from the start. This is now one of the longest strikes in public service history, and with the potential damage approaching $1 billion, we think Canada has suffered more than enough already. The time has come for the government to change tack."
PAFSO filed the complaint with the labour board in July after the government tried to impose six preconditions following the union’s offer of free arbitration. However, those conditions were unacceptable, the union argued. Their main concern has been equal pay for equal work in comparison to other federal employees.
Back when the union filed the complaint, Minister Tony Clement, president of the Treasury Board, said PAFSO’s demands were unreasonable, as it weighted its workers against incomparable jobs in the public service.
Since then, Treasury Board has reached collective agreements with three of its other public service groups, including correctional officers, aviation inspectors and technical services.
Diplomats at Canadian embassies across the globe have been on strike since the end of May and without a contract since mid-2011.
The federal government is currently deciding whether or not to appeal the bad-faith bargaining ruling.
Canadian government invests in labour market research
OTTAWA — More than $375,000 has been awarded through grants to support research on Canada’s future labour market issues.
Greg Rickford, federal minister of state for the Science and Technology, and Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, said the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) awarded 16 Knowledge Synthesis Grants to researchers at post-secondary institutions across Canada. Researchers will be working together in an effort to combine upcoming research on the labour market with existing academic knowledge and make their findings available to a broader audience.
Sixteen projects at post-secondary institutions across Canada will benefit from the grants. The projects connect Canadian researchers with international partners in academic, public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Each of the 16 projects will develop one of two themes — either the future demand for skills in the Canadian labour market, or the supply and development of skills for the future Canadian labour market.
Using the grants, Christian Andersen from the University of Alberta, working with partners at the Rupertsland Institute in Edmonton, will build understanding of Métis education, employment and training.
Sally Lindsay, from the University of Toronto, together with collaborators from the University of Guelph, the University of Toronto and the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, will use the grant money to find ways to increase the participation of persons with disabilities whose talents are underused in the Canadian labour market.
"Canada’s investments in social sciences and humanities research lead to new insights that create new value for businesses, governments, communities and individuals," said Chad Gaffield, president of SSHRC. "In particular, expanding our understanding of both supply and demand of essential skills in the Canadian workforce, and enhancing the flow of information between campuses and other sectors of society, supports job creation, increases productivity, and contributes to a resilient economy for the benefit of all Canadians."
