“A contract is good for our mental health,” said President, Maggie Wakeford, noting this is taking place during Mental Health week. “ We need our collective agreement now.”

Toronto (09 May 2011) - Workers are fed up waiting for a contract at the Cochrane Timiskaming Branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).

On May 4, CMHA staff, represented by OPSEU/NUPGE, held an information picket at three of the employer’s sites in northern Ontario.

Efforts to negotiate a new collective agreement have taken 18 months and staff have been without a pay raise since 2006.

“A contract is good for our mental health,” said President, Maggie Wakeford, noting this is taking place during Mental Health week. “We need our collective agreement now.”

The employees hope their picketing will pressure the employer to get back to the table with a serious offer.

The bargaining team returns to the table on May 9 and 10.

CMHA became an OPSEU/NUPGE workplace in December 2008 and has four locations in Timmins, New Liskeard, Kirkland Lake and Matheson.

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