Bargaining Update: Brenda Strafford Foundation—Clifton House
Your AUPE negotiating team met with the employer again multiple times in May, where we exchanged proposals. To put it mildly, we are still quite far apart from each other’s positions at the table. The employer is proposing a minimal wage increase, and to “offset” that increase with a series of major rollbacks.
First, the wage increases: along with some non-monetary revisions, the employer made a monetary proposal which contained no retroactive pay changes, only increases from the date of ratification. In their proposals:
- Health care aides (HCAs) would receive 2.1 per cent increases on the date of ratification, and one year later would match the wage increases at Wentworth manor, which was 3.6 per cent—for a total of 5.7 per cent;
- The first three years of the agreement, which have already passed, would be zeros;
- LPNs would receive 0.8 per cent on the date of ratification, and 3.5 per cent one year later, for a total of 4.7 per cent over the five-year term.
The employer is also trying to get us to agree to significant rollbacks elsewhere to “offset” these wage increases, which don’t even keep up with inflation. That includes wage rollbacks for unit clerks, therapy aides, and receptionists. The employer says that they would be open to making those wage rollbacks only apply to new hires, rather than existing employees. This type of two-tier contract is an employer tactic to break solidarity in the workplace. It is poison for workers.
The employer is also aiming to remove the Long Term Disability benefit, for which we have been paying 25 per cent of the premium cost—some of us for over 25 years! That money would be down the drain if the employer removed that benefit.
The employer also wants to roll back the overtime rate from 2.5 times the normal rate to 1.5 times the rate. They want to roll back night shift premiums from $5 per hour to $3 per hour. They want to gut our sick leave protections and delete language about new holidays.
We’ll be returning to the table on Oct. 18 and 19, where we will make it clear to the employer that we have no intention of accepting these rollbacks. After everything that we’ve been through over the past two pandemic years, we deserve a contract that reflects the sacrifices that we’ve made. We won’t take one step back—no rollbacks.
In order to achieve the fair contract that we deserve, your negotiating team needs your support. Standing in solidarity, and having a united worksite, is the most powerful tool that we have.
Don’t hesitate to reach out to any of the team members with any questions, comments, or feedback.
Clifton House negotiating team
Jeanine Keith, 403- 399- 6097, jeanine.keith@hotmail.com
Carol Eastman, 403- 816- 9943, caeastman@yahoo.ca
Shelley Wilton, 587- 777- 9780, swilton23@hotmail.com
AUPE staff resouces
John Wevers, Negotiator: 780-238-4767, j.wevers@aupe.org
Jaime Urbina, Organizer: 587-599-7557, j.urbina@aupe.org
Alex Fehr, Membership Services Officer: 1-800-232-7284, a.fehr@aupe.org