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MGEU files complaint with the Manitoba Labour Board while employees make plans to picket.
Winnipeg (12 May 2010) - Staff at Assiniboine Community College and Red River College, fed up after ten months without a contract, will picket on Thursday to draw attention to the lack of progress at the bargaining table.
After 35 bargaining sessions, the workers say, the employers have refused to negotiate any meaningful improvements to wages or health benefits.
"There's a name for what they're doing," says Peter Olfert, president of the Manitoba Government and General Employees' Union (MGEU/NUPGE).
"It's called backwards bargaining and it's an unfair labour practice. Today, we'll be filing an official application with the Manitoba Labour Board alleging just that."
Meanwhile, the province is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in construction and renovations at Manitoba colleges and universities.
While employees agree these investments in infrastructure are long overdue, they can’t understand why their employers refuse to make a meaningful investment in the people who deliver quality education and keep the colleges running smoothly.
"Such investment is a great thing for Manitoba," Olfert says. "Many of these projects are long overdue. But we also need to have some balance here. The shiniest buildings and renewed campuses are only part of the picture. Experienced, qualified staff are key to a quality education."
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE