REGINA -- Regina Police Chief Evan Bray had a meeting with Unifor national president Jerry Dias on Thursday that he described as “productive”.
Dias and 13 other union members were arrested and charged with mischief on the picket line at the Co-op Refinery on Monday night.
On Wednesday, Bray posted a video on Facebook saying he wanted to meet with Dias to open lines of communication.
Addressing the media on Thursday, Dias called the 49-day lockout "one nasty dispute."
He also said the union plans to challenge a court order restricting how long union workers can block trucks going into or out of the refinery. Unifor was found in contempt of court on Wednesday and received a $100,000 fine.
Dias also called on Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe to help get the two sides — the Co-op Refinery and Unifor — back to the bargaining table.
Unifor says it will remove the pre-conditions that Co-op leave the defined benefit pension plan untouched. However, it won't agree to the plan currently offered by Co-op.
The Co-op Refinery says it remains open to bargaining, adding it has stated that "meaningful negotiations require Unifor to drop their pre-conditions regarding no changes to the pension plan."
The refinery added it believes the union should respect the court order on the blockade.
"We respect Unifor's right to picket and peacefully protest, but they need to adhere to the court's order," Co-op said in a news release.
