“Our goal is to avoid a strike,” said BCGEU President Darryl Walker. “We want a fair collective agreement for our members, one that preserves jobs."
Vancouver (4 Oct. 2011) - BC Place workers, members of the British Columbia Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU/NUPGE) have voted in favour of possible strike action.
Eighty-nine per cent supported their bargaining committee’s call for a strike mandate.
The strike vote, which was conducted last week, was organized after contract talks with the employer, the BC Pavilion Corporation (PavCO), broke off. The main issue is job security.
Affected workers at BC Place perform duties that include event maintenance, security, hosting, first aid and skilled trades.
Under B.C. labour law, the union now has 90 days to serve 72-hour strike notice, if it elects to do so.
“Our goal is to avoid a strike,” said BCGEU President Darryl Walker. “We want a fair collective agreement for our members, one that preserves jobs. We won’t accept concessions. We won’t accept contracting out or downgrading of our jobs from full-time to part-time.”
With its strike mandate in hand, the union is now urging PavCO to come back to the bargaining table to negotiate a fair deal.
“Premier Christy Clark has been travelling around the province talking about job creation. Yet her crown corporation wants to cut jobs. We want jobs, just like the premier,” said Walker.
Please note. BC Place food service workers are employed by Servomation Inc. (aka Centerplate Catering) and not PavCO. Food service workers are covered by a separate collective agreement with the BCGEU/NUPGE and were NOT involved in last week’s strike vote.
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE
Digg
Reddit
Facebook
Twitter
Google
