Strike looms as Town-union wage talks fall apart

DENISE RIDEOUT

IQALUIT — The gulf between the Town of Iqaluit and the employees’ union is still too wide — their negotiations adjourned last week after less than a day of conciliation talks.

“We’re still miles, miles and miles apart,” said Rick Butler, the town’s chief administrative officer.

With the two sides so far apart — and union members strongly in support of strike action — Iqaluit is now much closer to a municipal workers’ strike.

A Town strike could affect everything from garbage pick-up to snow clearing. Many of the Town’s recreation facilities, such as the swimming pool and arena, would likely have to be closed.

The union and the Town met with a conciliator last week to see if they could reach a new collective agreement for Iqaluit’s 80 municipal workers. But the conciliation talks, scheduled to run for three days, were cut short.

Money was at the heart of the matter.

The union is asking for salary increases and retroactive pay to July 1999, when their last collective agreement expired. It’s also looking for improvements to the workers’ living allowances and other benefits.

But there are millions of dollars worth of differences between what the union is demanding and what the Town says it can afford.

The municipality estimates that the union’s demands would cost it $5 million dollars — more than double the money it already pays out to municipal employees.

The Town has said the most it can offer is a package worth $670,000, plus $2,500 in retroactive pay to each employee.

“We feel that we’re at the max right now,” Butler said.

For example, the Town is prepared to raise truck drivers’ salaries from an average of $32,000 to $37,000 a year, plus benefits. But the union is asking it be raised to an average of $60,000 a year, plus benefits.

Iqaluit Mayor John Matthews says Iqaluit residents would have to shoulder the huge increase. He said that in order to meet the union’s demands, the Town would be forced to raise property taxes by an average of $400 a year, or cut some municipal services.

“I don’t think the ratepayers would favour this increase,” Matthews said.

The union, however, refutes the Town’s numbers.

Doug Workman, spokesperson for the municipal workers, wouldn’t reveal exact numbers, saying it would be inappropriate to negotiate through the media.

But he did say the $5 million figure is wrong.

“I think that’s a bit of an exaggeration. I don’t see where they got the $5 million. It’s a bit bizarre,” Workman said.

He said it’s important for people to remember that municipal employees haven’t had a salary increase since 1993.

“The question is how many people are still making the same amount of money they were making 10 years ago? Not many,” Workman said.

The union is also asking the Town to change its job descriptions, to make sure that employees are paid fairly.

Workman said the job re-classification was supposed to be in place before their last contract ended in 1999, but that never happened.

“We’re not asking for millions here. We’re asking for respect and support,” Workman said.

Strike preparations

With contract talks in limbo, both sides are gearing up for a municipal strike.

The conciliator has said that union members may legally go on strike April 11.

The union has set up a strike headquarters in Iqaluit and some employees have already taken strike preparation courses.

The mayor said the Town is also coming up with contingency plans in case workers walk off the job.

“It’s a reality. The Town is quite prepared for a strike.”

The Town and the union are now awaiting for a conciliator’s report on the negotiations. It’s possible that the two sides could come back to the negotiating table before the April 11 deadline.