Major P.E.I. employee groups going to arbitration

Bargaining units affected include health department workers and the Civil Service, PEIRAC and WCB employee groups.

Charlottetown (9 July 2010) - A series of major employee groups represented by the Prince Edward Island Union of Public Sector Employees (PEIUPSE/NUPGE) are going to arbitration to resolve bargaining impasses with the province.

They include employees of the health department as well as workers who are members of the Civil Service, P.E.I. Regulatory and Appeals Commission (PEIRAC) and the Workers Compensation Board (WCB).

The union says talks with the health department date back more than a year to April of 2009 and broke down last December, leaving mostly monetary issues on the table.

"Negotiating teams moved to conciliation in March 2010 and were unable to resolve outstanding issues," the union says in an update posted on its website. "PEIUPSE and the Department of Health will now move to arbitration for settlement. Thomas Kuttner has been appointed as Arbitrator and dates are set for September 21 and 22."

The union also says that similar difficulties developed in negotiations on behalf of the other three groups.

"Negotiating teams have worked hard to reach an agreement since talks began in March 2010," the union reports.

"After two full days at conciliation your team representatives decided that many current and outstanding key issues were not going to be addressed at the table by the employer. Therefore, your representatives made a conscious decision to move to binding arbitration. Dates for arbitration are to be determined as per the Civil Service Act. More information will be posted when available."

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