Family Dynamics ratifies 4-year deal; First contract for Dielco Electric
B.C. budtenders ratify historic first contract
VICTORIA – Budtenders at Clarity Cannabis in Victoria ratified their first collective agreement on March 17.
The cannabis employees — represented by United Food and Commercial Workers union (UFCW), Local 1518 — negotiated their contract through the COVID-19 crisis and were the first private dispensary to earn pandemic pay for their essential work, says the union.
The contract includes wage increases between eight and 16 per cent that includes a $17.25-per-hour minimum wage and a top rate at $19.75 per hour. Other highlights included a retroactive one-time lump sum payment, product discounts, recovered benefits plan, additional week of vacation and paid sick days, says UFCW.
Mount Sinai clerical workers join CUPE
TORONTO — Part-time clerical workers at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto voted to join the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) on March 15.
The ballot count was delayed for more than three months by technical objections from the group’s former bargaining agent, the National Organized Workers Union (NOWU), says CUPE.
Eventually, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) ordered the ballots to be counted and announced a decisive win for workers wanting to be represented by CUPE, says the union.
The part-time unit joins full-time clerical workers at the hospital, who officially became CUPE members on Feb. 8.
“The workers felt they’d been left on their own for years and decided it was time to get solid representation with a democratic union that has superior collective agreements,” says Deb Oldfield, a CUPE representative who was involved in the organizing drive.
As a result of the two votes, 357 full- and part-time clerical workers have joined more than 100,000 Ontario healthcare workers who are already in CUPE, says the union.
Family Dynamics ratifies 4-year deal
WINNIPEG — Employees of Family Dynamics — who are represented by the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union (MGEU), Local 214 — ratified a new four-year agreement on March 18.
Highlights include wage increases in each year of the agreement, improvements to bereavement leave, and the addition of Indigenous traditional practices as a valid reason for requesting leave, says MGEU.
Family Dynamics provides a range of services to Manitoba families in need of support.
First contract for Dielco Electric
LONDON, Ont. — A first collective agreement has been secured for the employees of London, Ont.-based Dielco Electric on March 18.
The settlement was negotiated by their union, the Construction Workers Union, CLAC, Local 53.
Terms of the three-year settlement take effect April 1. CLAC, Local 53 was certified as the union for the employees by the Ontario Labour Relations Board in December, says the union.
The agreement establishes a spectrum of benefits for the employees including annual wage increases, their first healthcare benefits, and their first pension benefits, says CLAC.
Other aspects include vacation pay increases, paid work time for health and safety training courses, and an annual workwear and safety footwear allowance, says the union.
“The terms provide exactly what these members were looking for — good wages, healthcare benefits, and a pension they can trust,” says Roger Grootenboer, CLAC representative.
