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22 February, 2021
Dear Sisters and Brothers;
As reported to you at the end of January, IBEW 2034 and Manitoba Hydro agreed to utilize a mediator for negotiations on Feb 9th, 10th, and 12th. It further agreed to continue mediation on March 3rd and 4th if negotiations had not been concluded by that time.
Despite the best efforts of mediator Dennis Harrison, and the willingness of IBEW 2034 to reach compromises in bargaining positions that could benefit the members’ interests, while at the same time serve the employer well, I unfortunately must report that we have not made any significant progress to date.
Since the start of bargaining, we have met on 24 different days in order to negotiate a fair collective agreement which would replace the one that ended on December 31st, 2018. We have now been operating under the terms of an expired agreement for over 2 years. We have refined our proposals as much as possible and done a lot of soul-searching to make sure that our positions were both clear and reasonable. To that end your Bargaining Committee spent a couple of intensive days clarifying guiding principles and making sure that fundamental member welfare was kept first in mind.
Discussions with Manitoba Hydro have centered around housekeeping items and minor tinkering of existing clauses. While improvements in some of these areas can be viewed as positive, the discussions have not addressed substantive improvements for the members as a whole. Hydro’s willingness to enter debate has only been in areas that would give the slightest benefit to the smallest fraction of our total membership.
Most significantly, Hydro has refused to engage in any discussion involving monetary consideration. It has cited the government’s “mandate” of 0% increases for the past 2 years as prohibiting it from entering into negotiations on monetary items. Try as we might, Hydro’s team adamantly refuses to even discuss anything to do with money.
Recent settlements in Manitoba, and more specifically in the province’s public sector, prove that such a position is untrue. Don’t forget, we are seeking terms and conditions of employment for the years 2019 and 2020. This is important when we look at settlements for the same time period in other jurisdictions. For instance, AMHSEE and CUPE each received 1.25% and 1.5% wage increases in 2019 and 2020. Pembina Trails School Division received 1.4% and 0.5% + COLA for the same time period, as well as language restricting the use of term contracts. Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries employees received 2.0% in 2019, while employees of the Workers Compensation Board received a 0.75% increase to wages in 2019 and a 1.0% increase in 2020. Other notable settlements include the Winnipeg Police Service at 2.5% for 2019 and 1.0% for 2020; and the University of Manitoba Faculty Association at 0.75% in 2019 and 1.0% in 2020.
Although we do not know the context surrounding these settlements, (previous settlements, trades during negotiations, etc.), one thing is eminently clear. It is possible to reach settlements that contain monetary provisions. Hydro’s refusal to engage in such discussions at the bargaining table indicates that it is unwilling to negotiate a meaningful Collective Agreement.
We fear that this will be Manitoba Hydro’s persistent position come March 3rd. If it is, it will be clear that Hydro has every intention of presenting your Bargaining Committee with a “Final Offer”. Given the lack progress that has been achieved to date, you can be sure that when the time comes to vote on such a final proposal it will be with the committee’s recommendation to Reject the offer.
It appears that Hydro is not convinced of our serious intent to negotiate a reasonable Collective Agreement for our members. The only way left for us to convince the Corporation to engage in productive dialogue is to return to the table with a “Strike Mandate” from our members. We are at the point now where we need to gauge your support for our bargaining efforts by having you vote on a “strike mandate”.
Voting in favour of a ‘strike mandate” is NOT voting to automatically go on strike. Rather, it is a vote to show Hydro that you support your Bargaining Team and its proposals by giving it a mandate, if necessary, to call for a strike at some point in the future, in order to secure a fair Collective Agreement for all members. The purpose of a “strike mandate” is to give IBEW’s Bargaining Team the support it needs in order to actually have Manitoba Hydro BEGIN serious bargaining on the priority issues identified - including monetary items.
The strike mandate vote gives the IBEW’s Bargaining Team the power to call a strike, if necessary, at some point in the future, but the mandate is given in the absence of a strike deadline. While a strike is not an impossibility at some point in the future, there WILL NOT be a strike immediately following a strong “YES” in the mandate vote. Although not a guarantee of success, when members vote “YES” in a strike mandate vote, the likelihood of negotiating a fair contract at the bargaining table increases substantially.
If the members do not vote YES in the mandate vote, the Bargaining Committee will continue to negotiate. But, because it will have no power at the table, there will be few gains made in the contract, and Manitoba Hydro will know that it is able to impose losses to pay and benefits, and that our members will bend to its will.
In the next few days, you will be asked to vote on whether you are willing to grant your Bargaining Team a “Strike Mandate” that it can bring back to the bargaining table. Voting YES and showing strength and solidarity in our team’s resolve to get a FAIR Collective Agreement will hopefully compel Hydro to start negotiating items that are of significance to our members. To this point, all other efforts on the part of IBEW 2034 have proven fruitless.
The VOTE that will be sent to you will involve 2 statements of which you will be asked to choose only one option. You will be asked to select between the following statements:
#1. YES – I give my Bargaining Team authority to call a strike, if necessary, at some point in the future.
#2. NO - I do not give My Bargaining team authority to call a strike at any point in the future.
As arming your Bargaining Team with a "strike mandate" in time for the March 3rd meeting is critical, members are asked to register their VOTE as soon as they receive the question. The deadline for voting will be 10:00 a.m. on March 2nd. Members who have not registered a personal email address with the IBEW 2034 should be encouraged to do so at their earliest opportunity in order to receive their ballot. They can do so by calling the office at 204-944-2034.
In solidarity,
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