Unifor is calling out the Federated Co-operatives Ltd. for delaying bargaining after hitting an impasse in a pension dispute. Currently, the Co-op employees’ defined benefit pension is fully funded by the employer. The conflict started in mid-December when the Co-op proposed that employees begin paying 11 per cent of contributions, among other concessions. Unifor members have been blockading […]
The union representing 3,700 public sector employees in Newfoundland and Labrador are rejecting a proposed collective agreement from the provincial government, saying it includes unacceptable pension concessions. While the deal would provide workers with a wage increase of two per cent annually for two years, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Newfoundland and Labrador — […]
Unifor national president Jerry Dias and 13 other union members were arrested Monday night in Regina after the union blockaded the Federated Co-operatives Ltd. refinery as part of an ongoing conflict over employees’ defined benefit pension plan. The barricades are another escalation in an increasingly tense labour dispute that saw Co-op lock out more than […]
Employees at steelmaker Ivaco Rolling Mills Ltd. in L’Orignal. Ont. have ratified new collective agreements that include improvements to their wages and benefits. About 400 employees who are members of United Steelworkers locals 7940 and 8794 voted this week to ratify five-year collective agreements. The new contracts include improvements to benefits, including long-term disability, vision […]
The union representing Saskatoon Public Library workers has ratified a tentative collective agreement that involves improved leave provisions and wage increases. The Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 2669 has been in bargaining with the union since the last contract expired on Dec. 31, 2016. The new contract, covering 270 library workers at nine branches, will expire […]
French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing to launch a crucial week of negotiations with labour unions amid nationwide protests and transport strikes against the government’s plans to overhaul the pension system. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told France Inter radio that “a compromise has never been so close,” as talks between the prime minister […]
On the health benefits front, readers were focused on paid leave, legislative changes, medical cannabis and a range of other issues in 2019. Benefits Canada rounds up the industry’s most popular health and benefits stories of the year: 1. Employers urged to prepare for incoming EI parental sharing benefit 2. WSIB policy on medical cannabis takes effect 3. Scotiabank adds extra paid personal days […]
Eight hundred unionized employees of Regina-based Co-op Refinery remain locked out after contract negotiations stalled. The refinery, which is part of Federated Co-operatives Ltd., locked out members of Unifor Local 594 on Dec. 5. Unifor said Co-op is demanding major concessions on the employees’ defined benefit pension. Currently, the DB plan is fully funded by Co-op, but […]
The union representing 33 employees of the Northumberland County social services department says the county is attempting to weaken employees’ short-term disability leave and remove their right to work a compressed workweek. On Dec. 12, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 3725 began contract negotiations with the county using a provincially appointed conciliator. Union members […]
Employees at Eacom Timber Corp. have a new six-year collective agreement, which includes improvements to the pension and benefits plan. The lumber operation employs 160 people at its Timmins, Ont. mill and regional administrative centre, 110 of whom are members of the United Steelworkers Local 1-2010. Prior to the agreement, employees contributed a mandatory $120 […]