April 16, 2010 at 7:00 AM
On March 1, 2010 the CAW filed for conciliation with the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB). This was the first time that the CAW has had to file for Conciliation with Canadian North. This arose due to the fact that the Collective Agreement had expired and there was a lack of urgency on the Company’s part to provide dates for bargaining. On March 12, we were assigned a Federal Conciliator and all three parties met on April 7 and 8 in Edmonton, Alberta.
The Conciliator outlined the timelines to both parties in which we have to reach an agreement:
- May 13, 2010 deadline to reach an agreement (unless mutually agreed to extend)
- after May 13, 2010, there is a 21 day period (last attempt to reach an agreement)
- June 5, 2010 (Union in a legal position for a strike/Company can lock-out employees)
During bargaining on April 7 and 8, we were able to reach an agreement on a number of the non-monetary issues. We are still a very long way from reaching concurrence on the major issues and monetary proposal. Among the key issues that the CAW has tabled in bargaining is a “no contracting out” article. This proposal will ensure that no more jobs are lost to contracting out. This will ensure that what happened in Edmonton at the charter terminal doe not happen at other bases.
For the past two years the Company/Union relationship has become strained under the current management. Our goal is to ensure that we have contract language that protects our member’s rights.
In Solidarity,
Aida Kirameddine - District Chairperson - Bargaining Committee
Mike Byrne - CAW National Representative
Ron DiPasquale - Executive Assistant West, CAW Local 2002
For more information, please contact:
Ron DiPasquale - Executive Assistant West, CAW Local 2002
Tel: (778) 835-0791