28 October, 2020

Dear Sisters and Brothers;

We’ve now had a few days to digest and consider the implications that the changed government mandate has on our contract negotiations.  At the same time, we’ve heard the concerns and frustrations that many of you have been experiencing throughout the negotiations process.
 
What is now clear to the IBEW is that the government is seeking to reset the clock on negotiations by issuing a completely different mandate.  What is equally obvious is that the union has to return to square one of the bargaining process and decide how it will proceed with this new mandate.  Effectively, negotiations will be starting over!
 
The government has blamed a changed environment as the driver of its new position.  But that changed environment is not limited to government.  If we take stock of where we are today, we know that our members, many of them front-line workers, are working under increasingly difficult and dangerous conditions brought about by staff shortages, increased workloads, unmoving salary rates, wage reductions through unpaid vacations, and all the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Accepting that the environment has changed, the IBEW has to reassess its bargaining position in the same way that the province has seen fit to do.  This involves scrutiny of our bargaining proposals to determine the suitability of our negotiations package in meeting the needs of our members, considering the government’s acknowledgement of the changed bargaining environment.
 
The IBEW 2034’s Bargaining Committee will be meeting to discuss its negotiating position on November 5^th.  At that time, it’s anticipated that a review and re-assessment of bargaining proposals will take place and discussions of how new concerns arising from COVID-19 and our changed reality needs to impact our demands.
 
Once we have met and decided how our a newly re-aligned bargaining position should proceed, you’ll be informed of additional developments. 


In solidarity,

Business Manager
IBEW Local Union 2034