Canadian Labour Reporter

Border employees secure deal after strike OTTAWA — After a final round of negotiations that lasted more than 36 hours, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and Customs and Immigration Union (CIU) reached a tentative agreement with the Canada Border Ser- vices Agency (CBSA) on Aug. 6. "We are relieved that CBSA and the government finally stepped up to address the most important issues for our members to avoid a prolonged labour dispute," says Chris Ayl- ward, PSAC national president. "The agreement is a testament to the incredible hard work and dedication of our bargaining team who worked through the night to reach a deal." The agreement means an immediate end to work-to-rule strike action that had begun on Aug. 6 and ensures the flow of border traffic will return to normal, says the union. "CBSA employees have been on the front lines of the pandemic since day one, pro- tecting our borders and keep- ing Canadians safe. But they weren't receiving the support they needed from the govern- ment," says Mark Weber, CIU national president. Negotiations began in Janu- ary 2019 but reached an im- passe in December 2020. Following strike votes throughout June and July, PSAC announced a strike man- date and issued an official no- tice on Aug. 3, says PSAC. Manitoba school staff approve strike action WINNIPEG — School support staff in five school divisions in Manitoba voted on Aug. 6 in fa- vour of strike action, and called for contract negotiations to be resolved ahead of the new school year. "School support staff have been working incredibly hard to keep our schools and chil- dren safe during the pan- demic, yet the government continues to try to prevent school divisions from settling staff contracts fairly," says Lee McLeod, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) re- gional director. "School sup- port staff are feeling ignored and disrespected by the gov- ernment, and are voting to strike for fairness." School support staff who now have strike mandates in- clude the Brandon School Di- vision, custodians and trades at the Winnipeg School Divi- sion, custodians, library techs, bus drivers, IT, and clerical at the Seven Oaks School Divi- Subscribe to Canada's indispensable guide to human resources management since 1987 sion and support staff at Tur- tle Mountain and Park West School Divisions in the West- man area, says CUPE. School support staff have been without a new contract since 2018. They are asking for wage increases in line with recently settled teachers' con- tracts, says the union. Tentative agreement reached at PWL Stettler STETTLER, Alta. — The Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) workers at Points West Living (PWL) in Stettler, Alta. reached a ten- tative contract agreement on Aug 3. A membership vote is sched- uled for Aug. 12, says the union. At a previous meeting, the employer proposed a total compensation increase of 1.25 per cent, split over a three-year contract that was rejected by the union, says AUPE. After more bargaining, the employer improved its pro- posed compensation package, and that was accepted, says AUPE. It will include wage increas- es, a $450 signing bonus, in- crease to the health spending account to $450 per year ($150 per year higher than before) and shift differential hikes, says the union. www.hrreporter.com/subscribe FORMERLY CLV REPORTS Serving labour relations professionals since 1956 www.hrreporter.com/labour Subscription rate: $599 per year Customer Service subscriptions@kmimedia.ca 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 Employment Law Editor Jeffrey R. 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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. 2 LABOUR BRIEFS Canadian HR Reporter, a Key Media Canada (HR) Ltd. business 2021

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