16,0000 hospital workers awarded two per cent raise as union calls wage freeze 'dead'
The Ontario government is finding that pay freezes are easier said than done, after another arbitrator has reportedly ignored the province’s demand for wage freezes in the public sector.
This time, arbitrator Kevin Burkett has awarded pay raises to 16,000 unionized nurses and other hospital workers, according to reports in the Toronto Star.
The workers — members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) — were awarded annual raises of two per cent over two years.
In his ruling, Burkett acknowledged the province is facing financial difficulty, but said the “full range of relevant economic indicators” had to be considered and that “government pronouncements of intent with respect to future funding are not, in and of themselves, sufficient to override what would otherwise be the content of an arbitrated award. A legislated directive would be required for this to happen.”
Dwight Duncan, Ontario’s finance minister, told the Star the province can’t afford the agreements and won’t be transferring additional funds to accommodate raises.
“For those that reach non-compliant agreements, they’ll have to find the money elsewhere,” he said.
He said he was troubled by arbitrators’ language in recent settlements that have awarded pay increases for public-sector workers.
Marty Parker, head of the Ontario Hospital Workers Council, said: "The wage freeze is dead. The only way the government is going to reach its budget targets now is by delaying $2 billion in handouts to corporations. We just can't afford to pay for anymore corporate tax cuts."
For more information, including a look at earlier arbitration awards that have ignored the province’s call for wage freezes, see the Nov. 1 issue of Canadian HR Reporter or click on the related article link below.
