Planned strike vote switches
to ratification
nod to 4-year deal
Halifax Typographical Union | CWA Canada
Local 30130
Members of the Halifax Typographical
Union’s editorial unit voted 96 per cent in favour
of accepting a tentative agreement on Sunday.
The four-year deal was reached with the help of a
provincial conciliator late Friday afternoon, ending
three days of intense negotiations and turning a planned
strike vote into one for ratification.
“Our members are very pleased
we were able to reach a deal early in the process,” says
Local president Darren Pittman. “We’re
usually down to the wire with one foot on the sidewalk
before we get an agreement.”
The editorial unit's 103 members work as reporters,
photographers, librarians, editors and support staff
at the Halifax ChronicleHerald.
Pittman cites the company’s new negotiator as
a reason for management’s different approach
to the bargaining process: “We spent far less
time arguing over the minor issues and more time getting
to the heart of the matter. It was very refreshing.”
However, it wasn't until conciliation began Wednesday
that the negotiators got down to brass tacks. With
the contract expiring on Nov. 20, bargaining had begun
in the first week of that month. But after five meetings
and getting nowhere, says Pittman, the union applied
for conciliation.
The deal encompasses a 12-per-cent raise evenly divided
over the life of the contract, along with issues such
as maintaining language on transfers; increase in mileage
rates; some pension improvements including increasing
the accrual rate and a top-up for members accessing
their pensions early.
New to the contract is some basic protection for summer
staff. They will now get paid overtime and enjoy part-time
sick leave.
The bargaining team, led by CWA Canada staff representative
David Esposti, was able to fight off the company on
some serious language proposals that would have capped
overtime accumulation hours, allowed transfers between
classifications, and permitted transfers to bureaus
around the province.