B.C. school support staff reach tentative deal, avoid strike / Winnipeg firefighters’ union knocks controversial plan to offset overtime costs
Cuts put Winnipeg firefighters, public at risk: Union
Winnipeg — A controversial new proposal to cut overtime expenses at Winnipeg’s fire department will put staff and citizens at risk, according to the firefighters’ union.
In an internal memo publicly leaked by the union on Sept. 18, acting fire chief Bill Clark urged city council to implement changes that would offset rising overtime costs.
"Our department has been experiencing a massive impact to our budget due to the expense to backfill positions with overtime," Clark said. "This is not sustainable, and the department has been working to find solutions to offset these costs, without making an impact on public or member safety."
According to Clark, the fire department’s overtime projection for the year has increased by 86 per cent compared to last year.
In order to reduce hefty overtime expenses, department officials suggested having a select number of secondary fire units redeployed or left idle until needed during peak periods. Those select units would also be converted from four down to two-member squad units.
But the United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg (UFFW) slammed the policy, saying it will limit their ability to effectively do their job.
"It will mean that we will not have the proper number of firefighters available and we will not be able to respond with industry standards. Less staff means our job has become more dangerous," said Alex Forrest, president of UFFW Local 867. "Not only does this go against industry standards for safety response protocols, but it is also a direct violation of the collective agreement."
Further complicating the matter is that the fire department has recently had 34 staff retire and 15 go on long-term disability — but no new hires since January, Forrest explained, and as such, overtime costs have spiked.
B.C. school support staff avoid strike, reach tentative deal
victoria — About 33,000 public school staff in B.C. have averted a strike after reaching a tentative deal with the province this week.
Signed between the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) and the B.C. Public Schools Employer’s Association (BCPSEA), the two-year agreement comes with a 3.5 per cent wage increase and the introduction of a direct pay drug card.
Members of the bargaining unit, which include education assistants, bus drivers, clerical workers and trades staff, were in a legal position to walk off the job if a settlement was not reached ahead of the strike deadline.
"CUPE B.C.’s education workers are vital to keeping our schools clean, safe and inclusive," said CUPE B.C. president Mark Hancock. "I want to thank all 85,000 of our members across the province, and our kindergarten to Grade 12 members in particular, for their solidarity. It’s only because we held together that we were able to negotiate a fair and reasonable contract, despite demands for concessions from the government."
This deal is the latest to be reached under the co-operative gains mandate, which was introduced by the provincial government in 2012. The program applies to all public sector employees whose collective agreements expired after Dec. 31, 2011, and provides employers the ability to negotiate wages based on productivity increases within existing budgets.
In this case, that means school districts will have to save in order to be able to pay out the wage adjustments negotiated in the collective agreements.
The contract for B.C. school support staff must be ratified before the end of the year.
