Exploited CITIZENS ALL workers picket legislature in Regina

'We care deeply for our clients and do not want to disrupt their services.' - Larry McCrea

Regina (17 May 2007) - Workers employed by Citizens All, a Moose Jaw organization that provides residential and support services to people with mental and physical disabilities, conducted an information picket at the legislature in Regina Wednesday.

The 45 staff members, represented by the Saskatchewan Government and General Employees' Union (SGEU/NUPGE), are in a legal strike position.

"These workers are only asking to be paid a living wage," says SGEU president Bob Bymoen.

"They provide essential services to some of the most vulnerable members of our society, yet their work is chronically undervalued and underpaid," he says.

"I can't understand why, as a society, we believe it is okay to pay people who build houses or fix cars substantially more than we pay people who are responsible for the lives of human beings in need of care. How do we justify that?" Bymoen asked.

Citizens All resident care providers are paid minimum wage and work 24 hour shifts for a full week. In all, they work 4,368 hours a year, compared to a 40-hour a week worker, who puts in 1,993 hours in a year.

These staff members will only receive a pay increase because of the recent hike in the minimum wage. Workers in other job classifications have been offered a 1% increase.

The province provides funding to Citizens All board of directors who oversee the operations of the facility. The workers want the government to provide additional funding to allow for a wage increase.

"We care deeply for our clients and do not want to disrupt their services. Yet, we cannot go on living with poverty level wages," says Larry McCrea, spokesperson for the Citizens All bargaining unit.