GN, Iqaluit strikes looming in April

IQALUIT — Employees of the Nunavut government and the Town of Iqaluit may be on a crash course for a simultaneous strike.

If current labour talks go awry, both groups may walk off their jobs in early April — possibly right in the middle of Iqaluit’s annual spring festival, Toonik Tyme.

“That potential is real. I don’t think it’s dawned on anybody yet, but it is a very real possibility,” said Doug Workman, president of the Nunavut Employees Union.

“It’s not a threat, but it’s just something that could happen.”

GN employees have already approved a strike vote. If the second round of mediations between the union and the government breaks down, workers around the territory could walk out of work as early as the first week of April.

The first round of mediations with the union and the GN ended in January. Talks are set to resume April 4.

Meanwhile, Town of Iqaluit workers are also lobbying for higher wages and a new job-classification system. Their last contract expired back in June of 1999.

Negotiations on a new contract with the Town fell apart in December. The union then filed for conciliation — a process that is slated to begin March 19.

In the event that those talks fail, a strike vote could be called and Town employees could also be on the picket lines by early April.