Bargaining Update: Local 118, Chapter 004
On Friday, May 7, the Alberta Labour Relations Board notified the employer of their obligation to post the eligible voter list, and the full proposal for that vote, on Town of Ponoka worksites.
With the eligible voter list finalized, the Alberta Labour Relations Board is now mailing ballots to all eligible voters, so you should receive yours shortly.
If you are eligible but haven’t received a ballot by May 21, email the ALRB’s Dan Galdamez at dan.galdamez@alrb.ab.ca, or call him at (780) 427-0067.
The ALRB needs to receive your ballot by June 4 at the very latest, so mail it before the May long weekend (May 22) just to be safe. Postmarking your ballot before June 4 is not good enough—it needs to arrive at the ALRB before that date.
The ALRB will count the votes on June 7, starting at 10:00a.m. It shouldn’t take long for the results to come in afterwards.
Vote No!
Your bargaining committee remains united in encouraging you to vote no on the employer’s proposal. As we have outlined in previous bargaining updates, this is a bad deal for us.
The employer is proposing a deal with no noteworthy monetary improvements for us—beyond a small safety footwear allowance improvement. The deal is for two years of zeros, where our wages would not even rise with the cost of living. Because of inflation, two years of zeros is effectively a pay cut.
The employer says they’re committing to a review of our benefits, but will not commit to implement changes based on the results of that review. Your bargaining committee is negotiating to have real, concrete benefit improvements, not an empty review.
The employer’s proposal is also only for a two-year contract, which would send us right back to bargaining again at the end of 2021. Your bargaining committee is aiming for a longer contract.
Your bargaining committee stresses that this is not a strike vote. A strong, united no vote on this proposal is just a demand for the employer to get back to the bargaining table. The employer has previously rejected the presence of a mediator, and chosen instead to escalate by forcing the vote. They can only do this once—so when we get back to the bargaining table, they won’t be able to force another vote again.
Together, we can defeat this bad proposal, get the employer back to the negotiating table, and win a new contract that is fair for everyone. But to do that, we first need to vote no on the employer’s proposal.
Don’t hesitate to contact your bargaining committee with and questions, commentary, or feedback.
TOWN OF PONOKA NEGOTIATING TEAM:
Willie Jones willie8075@yahoo.ca
Lori Matejka matejkavl@gmail.com
Tamara Cameron huzar@live.com
AUPE RESOURCE STAFF:
Merryn Edwards Negotiator, m.edwards@aupe.org
Tracy Noble Organizing, t.noble@aupe.org
Jon Milton Communications Officer, j.milton@aupe.org