City of Winnipeg workers could be on strike next week

The union that represents thousands of City of Winnipeg workers have set a strike deadline for next week.

On Thursday, CUPE Local 500 announced that its bargaining committee has set Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 11:59 p.m. as the deadline for the City of Winnipeg to offer an “acceptable” deal. If this deal is not reached, 5,000 frontline city workers will be on strike come Wednesday.

“The city’s going to have to step up to the plate and ensure that we are a competitor in this labour market and ensure that we’re able to deliver services,” said Gord Delbridge, president of CUPE Local 500, on Thursday.

CUPE 500 said it has given the city a lot of time to provide an acceptable deal, but instead, the city has offered, “long-winded ways to give frontline workers less than they deserve, leaving them further behind.”

The union noted the city is losing staff members and is dealing with recruitment issues, which will only get worse if workers don’t receive real wage increases. Delbridge said that many employees are leaving for other opportunities where they can receive better pay.

“We’re being fair, we're being reasonable with our ask,” he said.

“We’re willing to take a reduction with our standard of living. We understand that the employer has economic challenges as well, but so do we as working-class families, and we’ll share that burden with you. We’ll work with you, but you can’t put it all on us.”

CUPE 500 added that the city still has time to work with them to prevent a strike, but the “ball is in their court.

“We are asking the city to come back to the table and put an end to this,” Delbridge said.

In a statement, the City of Winnipeg said it has presented an offer to CUPE, which includes general wage increases “well-above” those included in the offer that the CUPE bargaining committee shared with their members, and also includes “significant money” that would be be used for special wage adjustments to lower paid classifications.

“The City’s negotiating team has worked very hard to reach a fair deal for our CUPE represented workforce that avoids a labour disruption that would impact the important City services residents rely on,” said Michael Jack, the City’s chief administrative officer, in a news release. “We strongly encourage CUPE’s negotiating committee to accept the City’s latest offer and take it to their membership before any job action is taken.”

The city’s statement also says they proposed an essential services agreement to CUPE that would allow employees in certain key positions, such as 911 contact centre employees and sewage treatment, to continue to provide essential services.

“To date, CUPE has not agreed to sign this essential services agreement,” the city said.

The city said it will work to maintain essential services if a strike occurs, including police, fire, and paramedic response, water treatment, water quality testing, and transit service. They said services that are contracted out, such as recycling and garbage service, will not be impacted.

“Depending on the approach CUPE takes to strike planning, many city services and programs could either be reduced or temporarily interrupted, and certain city facilities may be temporarily closed to members of the public during a strike,” the statement from the city reads.