July 20, 2012 at 4:10 PM
The CAW Jazz Technical Services bargaining committee has reached a tentative agreement with the employer on a new three year collective agreement. The new deal addresses many of the key issues highlighted by the membership throughout the development of the contract proposals.
"We are pleased that the bargaining committee was able to reach a fair and equitable deal for the membership," said Ron Smith, CAW’s director of transportation. "This round of negotiations was adversely impacted by the current economic environment and in addition the base closure announcement at YXU meant there was additional pressure to deal with the effects of that decision and the uncertainty it would cause throughout the system."
It was a combination of these adverse events that resulted in a recent breakdown in talks. Your bargaining committee was clear to the Employer from day one that the nature and extent of their proposals was a recipe for disaster. Further compounding the challenges to be met was the employers bargaining agenda. Your committee was clear from the start of negotiations that our membership has been instrumental in the success of Jazz over the past three years and members had to be recognized for their contribution.
We want to thank the membership for attending the information sessions that were held from coast to coast. We also want to thank you for the solidarity and support that sent a strong message to the employer that their course of action had to change. It was your solidarity and support that resulted in a noticeable change in direction by the employer as the talks resumed on July 16.
CAW President Ken Lewenza stated, "I would like to commend the bargaining committee for addressing the many challenges they faced and the obstacles they had to overcome to reach this settlement. In today’s environment it is difficult to reach a bargained settlement without outside interference as we’ve seen recently in the federal sector. On that basis, I would want to acknowledge the support of the membership and the hard work of the bargaining committee and join with them the recommendation of the settlement for ratification.
Your bargaining committee is unanimously recommending acceptance of the new terms and conditions contained in the agreement. We are currently finalizing a document to release to the members in advance of the upcoming ratification meetings. We are currently working on securing dates and locations for ratification meeting to take place in all bases commencing early next week.