NEU says 15 per cent allowance hike may be illegal

MICHAELA RODRIGUE

IQALUIT — A Nunavut union boss is blasting the government for exceeding its powers and circumventing ongoing contract negotiations by unilaterally announcing an across-the-board hike in northern allowances.

The Nunavut Employees Union (NEU) is now seeking legal advice about the issue.

“We believe they have exceeded their own authority. Whether it’s good or bad… that’s not even an issue,” said Doug Workman, president of the NEU.

Early this week, Finance Minister Kelvin Ng announced all government workers will receive a 15-per-cent hike to their northern allowances starting April 1.

He said the decision to grant the increase is the result of a Nunavut government review of the northern allowance system. That review is still continuing, Ng said.

The government of the Northwest Territories introduced the northern allowance system in 1995-96 to replace vacation travel assistance and settlement allowances.

The value of northern allowances varies from community to community. Nunavut government workers in Iqaluit currently receive a northern allowance of $8,872 a year.

After April 1, 2000, they will receive northern allowances of $10,202.80 a year.

Contract negotiations

Ng made the announcement just as teachers in Nunavut are in the midst of voting on a newly-negotiated contract. Negotiations between the government and 1,100 NEU members are also underway.

The government’s unilateral announcement caught Workman by surprise, and he says the union is now “seeking legal advice.”

“They’ve actually circumvented the negotiating process by doing this, and we take exception” Workman said.

Workman said the government violated Section 41.04 of the Public Service Act when it changed working conditions while contract negotiations are underway.

He said the government should have presented the increase at the bargaining table this weekend. At Nunatsiaq News press-time this week, union lawyers were studying the announcement and considering possible options.

The hike, which he said eventually will cost between $4 million and $4.5 million a year, reflects the increasing costs of living and travel in Nunavut communities, Ng said.

“We knew we were going to make changes. We thought the sooner versus later would probably be better from an employee morale perspective” Ng said.

The NEU has said its members want vacation travel assistance reinstated and changes to the northern allowance. Workman said the union views the benefits as two separate issues and that the government’s announcement treats them as one issue.

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Donna Stephania, president of the Federation of Nunavut Teachers, called the increase “positive” and said she wasn’t entirely surprised by the news.

“I did anticipate some further increases than what we had negotiated would be forthcoming,” Stephania said. The increase would likely be rolled into the collective agreement.

But she said the government has a right to increase benefits unilaterally and that the addition wouldn’t require a vote.

Nunavut’s teachers are now voting on a newly-negotiated contract their federation had initially recommended they ratify. But on Dec. 9, the federation pulled its support from the deal.

Ng hopes the announcement will have “a positive impact” on both contracts. “This is over and above anything that’s been agreed to in principle,” he said.

But some teachers have indicated the hike won’t affect their vote, Stephania said.

“I have had some feedback from a number of members to say they are appreciative of the additional money, but that it wouldn’t affect their vote one way or another,” she said.

Workman argues the hike gives “credibility” to the northern allowance system, which he says needs to be changed.

“What this action does is give credibility to an uncredible formula. What we wanted to do is look at the factors that make up the formula,” Workman said.

Ng said the union can bring up any concerns at the bargaining table this weekend. But on April 1, government workers will receive the bonus.

“We’ve done it. We’ve made a commitment,” Ng said, adding the unions can choose to roll it into the collective agreement. “Obviously in the long-term I think it would be beneficial to both groups to have it in the agreement.”