May 20, 2016
1770
The union representing construction and clerical workers at Bruce Telecom says the company needs to ‘get serious’ about negotiating a fair contract before a May 29 deadline for a lockout or strike.
“Time and again, our members have put the interests of the community ahead of their own self-interest,” says Mark O’Leary, president of Local 255 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE 255), which represents the 58 workers currently trying to bargain a new collective agreement with Bruce Telecom.
“This corporation is consistently profitable, and our members made numerous sacrifices in previous years to ensure Bruce Telecom remained a viable service to the community, and continued to benefit all residents of the expansive serving area. It’s particularly galling for our members to now be told that after all those sacrifices, our employer now expects us to accept a zero cost-of-living adjustment for the foreseeable future."
The union and Bruce Telecom have been attempting to negotiate a contract with the assistance of a conciliation officer. To date, these efforts have been unsuccessful.
O’Leary says he remains optimistic a deal can be reached.
“If Bruce Telecom comes to the table committed to actually negotiating and resolving the remaining outstanding issues, then I have every confidence we can finish the work of negotiating a fair collective agreement,” he says.
“Our commitment to the residents of Kincardine, the surrounding area and to Bruce Telecom users is that we are prepared to negotiate, but we can’t negotiate by ourselves. We need a willing partner at the table."
The parties were slated to meet Friday (May 20), with the assistance of a federally-appointed mediation officer.
Written ByLiz Dadson is the founder and editor of the Kincardine Record and has been in the news business since 1986.
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