Last fall, negotiations between the House of Commons and UNE Local 70390 members in the Operational and Postal Services bargaining unit, reached an impasse. PSAC is going to arbitration before the Federal Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board (FPSLREB).
The arbitration hearings will be taking place virtually on April 2 and 3. The hearings will be public.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/92111428891
Meeting ID: 921 1142 8891
Passcode: 439835
If you experience difficulties using Zoom, please contact FPSLREB_Admins@tribunal.gc.ca.
This dispute resolution step, part of the long and sometimes arduous negotiation process, is unfolding because of the unwillingness of the employer to accept some fundamental bargaining demands.
“As Canadians, we should be ashamed to see the very halls of democracy treat their workers in this manner,” declared UNE National President Alisha Campbell. “When not even the House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of Canada, will play fair with its workers leading to arbitration, what hope do Canadian workers have at gaining better working conditions? Our dedicated members deserve their fundamental bargaining demands to be heard. If it’s a fight they want, it’s a fight they will get!”
Our members have brought forward the following demands at the bargaining table:
- The implementation of a bilingual bonus
- Increases of shift premiums similar to the ones various PSAC members receive
- The possibility for seasonal House of Commons workers to apply for full-time positions
On top of these bargaining demands, the employer refuses to implement critical issues that PSAC successfully negotiated with Treasury Board last spring, such as:
- Economic increase comparable to other bargaining units in the parliamentary precinct
- Compensation for Phoenix damages that occurred in 2021
- Compensation for the late implementation of the collective agreement
- Expanded rights for family-related leave
- Additional wage increases that reflect the ones received by other PSAC members who perform similar, sometimes identical tasks as the ones performed by our members
- An additional personal day
If you have any questions about the hearing and the current dispute with the House of Commons, please contact your Local executive.