Is York Serious about Averting a Strike?
Bargaining Team Report for Wednesday February 21
After bargaining today, the Bargaining Team is left wondering: Is the Employer serious about averting a strike? A full day of bargaining conducted by “shuttle diplomacy” (i.e., the Conciliator acting as go-between) resulted in only minimal changes to the offer the membership overwhelmingly rejected last Friday. Although we appear to have agreed on a few important equity proposals, on all the other main issues—including salaries, benefits, and job security for Units 2 and 3—the two parties are no closer to reaching a deal that members could accept.
Employer Misleads the York Community
We started the day dealing with the Employer’s letter to the Bargaining Team—a letter designed more to mislead our members and the wider public than to express any genuine disappointment with our decision to bargain this Friday in the afternoon only. To be clear, the Employer’s claim that we cancelled our Friday bargaining session is false. As members know, our SGMM last Friday ended with a rejection of the Employer’s “final offer” but without members having a chance to vote on whether to go on strike on February 26 as the Executive and Bargaining Team have recommended. The earliest we could schedule another GMM to make that decision was this Friday. We clearly communicated to the Employer that we needed to hold this meeting in the morning but would bargain in the afternoon. We have also indicated to the Conciliator that the Bargaining Team is available to continue bargaining into Friday evening or on the weekend—as long as the Employer is willing to make a serious offer. Although we responded to the Employer’s letter, and posted our response on our website, we would prefer to spend our time actually bargaining and not dealing with the Employer’s shenanigans.
Employer Disappoints with Marginal Increase to Their Retroactive Wage Proposal
We couldn’t help but scratch our heads at the Employer’s latest plot twist, revealed in their letter—that is, their claim that the “Comprehensive Framework for Settlement” they dropped on us last Thursday wasn’t, in fact, their final offer. This bit of news had us oddly optimistic.
With Bill 124 ruled unconstitutional and set to be repealed, CUPE 3903’s retroactive wage demands have gained new force. Through the Conciliator today, the Bargaining Team urged the Employer to improve their retroactive wage proposal and restated our position that wage increases need to keep pace with the 15.8% inflation that our members experienced between September 2020 and September 2023. We emphasized that our requested increases are quite reasonable; for some members, keeping up with inflation is crucial to avoid dependence on food banks. We also emphasized that all members who worked during the period affected by Bill 124 should be entitled to retroactive compensation. Anything less would imply that the employer is exploiting this unconstitutional legislation to suppress the wages of members who held CUPE 3903 contracts during the Bill 124 period but who no longer hold such contracts.
Our initial optimism about receiving a substantial wage offer quickly turned to disappointment. The revised offer we received in the afternoon barely nudged upward their previous offer, increasing it by a mere 0.5%. Instead of 3.75% for 2022–23 only, they are now offering 0.75% in 2020–21, 0.75% in 2021–22, and 2.75% in 2022–23. Combined with the previously negotiated 1% per year, this would give us a cumulative retroactive increase of 7.4%, less than half the rate of inflation. Equally problematic, the Employer has thus far not budged from their position that only members who hold a contract at the date of ratification would be eligible for a retroactive, lump-sum payout.
A Strike Beginning Next Monday Seems All But Inevitable
Bargaining today ended with little progress on issues we need to settle as we move ever closer to a strike next Monday. While we are serious about negotiating a deal that would avoid a strike, we are ready to go out if necessary. Strike preparations are underway, with a rally on February 26 for the first day and picket lines ready to go up the following day. As a strike looms ever closer, we call on the Employer to match our commitment and sense of urgency to reach a just settlement.
Get Involved! Upcoming Meetings
Join Executive, Bargaining Team, and Strike Mobilization Committee members for tomorrow’s Strike Q&A session: Thursday, February 22, 2:00–5:00 p.m.
Don’t miss the Emergency Special General Membership Meeting on Friday, February 23, 9 a.m.–12 p.m. At this meeting, the Bargaining Team will provide a bargaining update and members will vote on whether to strike as of Monday, February 26. Please register in advance for this meeting so that membership lists can be checked and discrepancies sorted out well before the meeting begins.
Open Bargaining
Our union practices open bargaining, meaning all meetings of the Bargaining Team—including our face-to-face meetings with the Employer’s bargaining team—are open to all members of CUPE 3903. Members are encouraged to attend both our Bargaining Team meetings, which take place online, and our meetings with the Employer, which usually take place in a hybrid format. As of this week, in-person bargaining meetings with the Employer will be held at Ministry of Labour offices on the 8th floor of 400 University Avenue. This location is fully accessible and close to St. Patrick subway station. As members of CUPE 3903, you are free to come and go from any of our meetings as your schedules allow. Check the calendar on the CUPE 3903 website for any updates or changes.
Bargaining Meetings with the Employer (advance registration required):
Friday, February 23, 1:00–5:00 PM (online only) Register for the Zoom meeting in advance.
Monday, February 26, 10:00 AM–5:00 PM: Register for the Zoom meeting in advance.
Wednesday, February 28, 10:00 AM–5:00 PM: Register for the Zoom meeting in advance.
For all bargaining meetings with the Employer, CART closed captioning will be available. If you require ASL interpretation or reimbursement for childcare/caregiver/attendant care or have any other requests for accommodation, please contact our Equity Officer, Nadia Kanani, at cupe3903equity@gmail.com.
Bargaining Team Meetings (no registration required):
Thursday, February 22, 1:00–2:00 PM:
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