Canadian Labour Reporter

2 Canadian HR Reporter, a HAB Press business 2019 B.C. municipal workers vote to strike COLDSTREAM, B.C. — Mem- bers of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), Lo- cal 626 working for the District of Coldstream in Coldstream, B.C. voted 96 per cent in favour of taking job action in a strike vote held on Sept. 20. "This is not an action we take lightly. We've been working to re- solve this issue at the bargaining table but are facing demands we simply cannot accept," says Bryce de Dood, CUPE 626 president. The parties began bargaining in May and made substantial progress in six full days of ne- gotiations. Talks broke down in August with the employer seek- ing a wage settlement lower than surrounding communities and below the provincial average for municipalities, says the union. The employer then demanded a longer term than proposed by the union, a move that would amplify the negative impact of the employer's proposed below average wage settlement, says CUPE. "The employer's proposal would lock us into an agreement that lowers our wages relative to other municipalities, and our members cannot afford to move backwards," says de Dood. Following the strike vote, the union applied to the B.C. La- bour Relations Board to have a mediator appointed in the hopes of resolving the dispute prior to a disruption in services to the community. Dates for mediation have yet to be scheduled, says CUPE. JLM Supply workers in Edmonton join UFCW EDMONTON — Warehouse workers at JLM Supply in Edmon- ton joined the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Canada, Local 401 on Sept. 20 af- ter voting to join the union. "The main reasons these workers chose to create a union was to fix job security and im- prove worker safety," says Saba Mossagizi, UFCW 401 union organizer. The new members work with gaskets, valves, strainers, swivel joints, bolting and other prod- ucts and perform physically demanding work that involves shipping, receiving and welding- fabrication, says the union. "We will be commencing bar- gaining within 30 days and have agreed to start the process of first contract arbitration within 90 days if necessary," says Chris O'Halloran, director of organiz- ing at Local 401. The first contract arbitration process is a new, fast-paced ap- proach to bargaining first-con- tracts in Alberta that involves high levels of member engage- ment, says the union. Members can expect to see surveys to gauge their wants and expec- tations. The union will also be looking for members to join the health and safety committee and take up rolls as union stewards, says UFCW. Sudbury, Ont. nurses head to conciliation SUDBURY, Ont. — Following two days of failed negotiations, public health nurses, registered nurses and nurse practitioners with the Ontario Nurses' Asso- ciation (ONA) are heading into conciliation talks with Public Health Sudbury and Districts in Sudbury, Ont. on Sept. 24 in an attempt to avoid a strike. "We are committed to reach- ing an agreement with this em- ployer without being forced to withdraw our services. A strike would disrupt the vital services that our members provide to the 165,000 residents in Greater Sudbury as well as the districts of Sudbury and Manitoulin," says Vicki McKenna, ONA president. The contract for these nurses — who provide a wide range of services for about 165,000 resi- dents — expired last March, says McKenna. ONA expects this employer to "negotiate a fair collective agree- ment that values the care nurses provide to their community," says McKenna. "No nurse ever wants to be forced to withdraw services, and we believe this employer does not wish to see services withdrawn either. The community's health and well- ness is too important, and we hope to see respectful and pro- ductive conciliation tomorrow." LABOUR BRIEFS FORMERLY CLV REPORTS Serving labour relations professionals since 1956 www.labour-reporter.com Subscription rate: $599 per year Customer Service Tel: (416) 609-3800 (Toronto) (800) 387-5164 (outside Toronto) Email: info@habpress.ca Website: www.labour-reporter.com President Tim Duce Editor/Supervisor Sarah Dobson | (416) 644-8740 Ext 330 sarah.dobson@keymedia.com News Editor John Dujay | (416) 644-8740 Ext 321 john.dujay@keymedia.com Sales Manager Paul Burton | (416) 644-8740 Ext 325 paul.burton@keymedia.com Marketing Co-ordinator Keith Fulford | (416) 644-8740 Ext 329 keith.fulford@keymedia.com ©2019 HAB Press Limited All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher (HAB Press Limited). KEY MEDIA and the KEY MEDIA logo are trademarks of Key Media IP Limited, and used under license by HAB Press Limited. CANADIAN LABOUR REPORTER is a trademark of HAB Press Limited. e publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional advice. If legal or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. e analysis contained herein represents the opinion of the authors and should in no way be construed as being either official or unofficial policy of any governmental body. ISSN 0045-5113 Publications Registration 2089 Canadian Labour Reporter is part of the Canadian HR Reporter group of publications. Visit www.hrreporter. com for more information. Labour Reporter Canadian www.labour-reporter.com GET LISTED IN THE HR VENDORS GUIDE Visit hrreporter.com/hr-vendors-guide HR Professional Development Description: Faccaerio. Name volore pre et atur. Cerumqui consedi seraectis eos magnisi nvenihi lliquist qui accum de pres experis testior eperest que ventust qui re volorum quatat. Ed et aut aut harunt aut fugitata iur. Cerumqui consedi seraectis eos magnisi nvenihi lliquist qui accum de pres experis testior eperest volorum quatat. Training and Development Description: Faccaerio. Name volore pre et atur. Cerumqui consedi seraectis eos magnisi nvenihi lliquist qui accum de pres experis testior eperest que ventust qui re volorum quatat. Ed et aut aut harunt aut fugitata iur. Cerumqui consedi seraectis eos magnisi nvenihi lliquist qui accum de pres experis testior eperest volorum quatat. 123 Queen Street Suite 101 Toronto, Ontario M1P 1M1 Canada Phone: (416) 111-2222 E: Info@companyname.ca www.website.ca Company Name Company Logo 2 0 1 9 READERS' WINNER CHOICE

• Cover