Toronto and York Region Labour Council
Strike Support Updates
1) Lock Out Continues: CUPE Local 3636 at Yellowbrick Shelter
2) OPSEU 512 (Centre for Spanish Speaking People) Celebrate Success and Solidarity
3) Bargaining breakthroughs! SEIU members vote YES to new collective agreement with Woodbine Entertainment Group
4) HERE Local 75 Ends Lockout at Woodbine, Mohawk, Greenwood Racetracks
5) Strike Deadline Looms for CEP/OPEIU at the Canadian Labour Congress
PLEASE SEE DETAILED REPORTS BELOW
Please let us know if your local is approaching a strike/lockout deadline!
Helen Kennedy, Chair
Strike Support Committee
Toronto and York Region Labour Council
(416) 561-3163 [email protected]
www.labourcouncil.ca
1) Lock Out Continues: CUPE Local 3636 at Yellowbrick Shelter
A spirited picket line rally was held on Feb. 10 outside the Yellowbrick Shelter in Aurora, in support of CUPE Local 3636 who have been locked out since January 24. CUPE National President Paul Moist, Ontario Division’s Brian O’Keefe, the OFL’s Carrol Anne Sceviour and the Toronto and York Region Labour Council brought solidarity greetings to the workers. CUPE 905, representing York Region municipal workers, invited everyone back to their union hall for a warm and welcomed lunch!
Union-busting is clearly management’s aim in this lockout. They tried to force through a reorganization of the workforce that would see up to nine union activists with more than 75 years of experience lose their jobs through permanent lay- off. Management feels they need to replace these workers with new staff with greater education and language skills -- despite the fact that some of those who have been targeted are currently working for further upgrade their education and in some instances, already speak a second language.
Local 3636 has been called back to the bargaining table on Feb. 12. If the talks don’t go well, members of 3636 and their supporters have pledged to turn up the heat on solidarity actions. More details to follow.
2) OPSEU 512 (Centre for Spanish Speaking People) Celebrate Success and Solidarity
After two frigid months on the picket line, workers at the Centre for Spanish Speaking Peoples reached a new collective agreement and returned to work on February 2nd. An incredibly spirited strike, the 10 members of the local were on the line through one of the coldest spells in recent memory.
As their strike was nearing an end, the members went out of their way to spread the solidarity message to other picket lines in the area. On January 25, the local attended a rally for SEIU/HERE workers at Woodbine Race Track. The next week, they drove up to Aurora in support of the locked out CUPE members at Yellow Brick House. On both lines, the OPSEU members donated money from their own strike support fund to the striking/locked out workers. Now that’s what I call solidarity!
3) Bargaining breakthroughs! SEIU members vote YES to new collective agreement with Woodbine Entertainment GroupTORONTO, Jan. 31 /CNW/ - No. No. And finally, YES! That's SEIU Local 528 members' answer to the third tentative agreement put before them in a two-week, high-profile labour dispute with Woodbine Entertainment Group.
The vote results, announced only moments ago, mean that SEIU now has a new three-year collective agreement for members who work at Woodbine, Mohawk and Greenwood, bringing to an end two weeks of vigorous picketing, traffic line-ups, and widespread and growing actions by the labour movement and social justice community.
On Jan. 17, despite employer threats, locked-out security officers voted down a "take-it -or be-locked-out final offer" and laid the groundwork for breakthroughs at the bargaining table.
One week later, on Jan. 24, security officers, housekeeping and maintenance employees, rejected a tentative agreement and voted to join with each other to achieve movement on crucial bargaining demands.
The problem with the previous tentative agreements was that they did not go far enough in uniting workers from the various departments. The new offer which contains important language on coordinated bargaining means that in the next round of negotiations SEIU will face the employer as one united group.
"Prior to this the workers were like five fingers on a hand. Now we are a clenched fist," says security officer Russel Buckmaster. In addition, the settlement contains significant wage and benefit improvements, including a new pension plan for security officers.
"Our members mobilized and took the industry's most powerful employer to task," says Local 528 President Joan Higgins. "We now turn our attention to negotiations at Flamborough Downs and Kawartha."
4) HERE Local 75 Ends Lockout at Woodbine, Mohawk, Greenwood Racetracks
TORONTO, Jan. 31 /CNW/ - By a strong vote, the food and beverage workers of WEG have ratified their collective agreement, ending a lockout that lasted a week.
In a joint meeting with SEIU members, a victory was proclaimed for over 800 workers involved in the labour dispute covering many of the racetrack and slot departments.
"Our 400 members view this as a historic moment. Workers said no, weathered a lockout, and came back together to bargain a contract. We didn't allow the company to dictate to us, and we got a negotiated settlement through a concerted effort between HERE and SEIU," said Paul Clifford, President of HERE Local 75.
Wage increases averaged over 10% over 3 years, pension contributions increased and there were a number of operational improvements.
5) Strike Deadline Looms for CEP/OPEIU at the Canadian Labour Congress
Strike/Lockout deadline for CLC staff, represented by CEP and OPEIU, is set for Thursday February 12th, 2004 at midnight! If the two locals do not reach an agreement, picket lines will be going up at the Ontario Federation of Labour building at 15 Gervais Drive. Details to follow.
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posted 13 February 2004 08:58 PM
