REGINA -- Amid ongoing contract negotiations with the province, Unifor has announced it will begin job action for workers at six Crown corporations and the Water Security Agency starting at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, September 30.
In a statement on their website Saturday, Unifor advised member workers not to do “anything over and above the minimum that is required to do your job safely and effectively.”
Employees are being directed not to work any overtime and disregard the company’s performance targets.
SaskEnergy, SaskPower, SecurTek, DirectWest, SaskWater and the Water Security Agency will join Unifor members at Sasktel in job action.
Unifor says negotiations will continue through Thursday, but if no deal is reached, it will begin a strike for all seven groups beginning at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, October 4.
In an update on Unifor’s website, the union’s bargaining committee said it was presenting a new offer Thursday evening and a proposed two-year wage freeze is a key sticking point in the talks.
“Our government recognizes that job action is part of the bargaining process and is the right of unions. However, we continue to feel a strike is not in the best interest of the Crowns, Crown employees, and Crown shareholders – the people of Saskatchewan,” Finance Minister Donna Harpauer said in a news release on Friday.
“We continue to have confidence in the collective bargaining process that will continue throughout the weekend. We are committed to providing updates if necessary.”
In the event of job action, essential services agreements and business continuity plans are in place at all Crowns to ensure vital services continue, she said.
