CUPE 3903’s Bargaining Team’s Response to Dan Bradshaw’s public letter spreading misinformation on February 21st.

Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Dear Dan Bradshaw,

We are happy to hear that the university “remains committed to negotiating renewal collective agreements” with us.  We, too, are committed to the same; we submitted our full proposals package back in late October 2023 and presented many counter-proposals over the past months, including on February 15.  

We are disappointed that you have chosen to blatantly misrepresent the facts in your recent public letter instead of making meaningful movement at the table.   

First, you are intentionally sowing misinformation with regard to the final offer. Weeks before our Final Offer General Membership Meeting on Friday, February 16, we signaled to you and the Conciliator that we would need to see a final offer from the employer on February 15, our last bargaining session before that important meeting. At no point did you indicate to us that you would not be presenting a final offer to us on February 15, and at the end of that day’s bargaining session, you provided us with a new “Comprehensive Framework for Settlement” for each unit. While it’s great to hear you have more movement to make, this was not communicated to us prior to your public letter. We look forward to seeing your revised position in advance of our next GMM on the morning of February 23. 

Second, we have not cancelled bargaining on Friday, February 23, as you well know. Your letter omits that we will be bargaining with you for several hours that afternoon, after our membership meeting. If the exclusion of the morning is such a significant concern, we would welcome receiving revised counters in the meantime so that the afternoon session on February 23 can be as productive as possible. 

Your positions on wages, benefits, and our new equity initiatives suggest that you are not committed to averting a strike. We have all of our cards on the table. If the employer is ready to bargain, then give us an offer that will be fair and just to our members and that we can recommend they ratify. Until then, we await the employer at the bargaining table.

Sincerely, 

CUPE 3903 Bargaining Team