LOCAL NEWS/CANADIAN LABOUR- WINNIPEG:

SOLIDARITY PICKET FOR CNIB WORKERS TOMORROW, MARCH 18:

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The following is from Local 832 of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

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Solidarity Rally being held in front of CNIB Thursday March 18.
Clients who rely on CNIB services want to be heard.

A Solidarity Rally will be held in front of the CNIB Office at 1080 Portage Avenue from 2:30 to 4:30p.m. The press conference for the media will be at 3:00pm and UFCW Local 832 President Robert Ziegler will be speaking along with MFL President Kevin Rebeck, CNIB staff who are currently locked out and Eric Mackinder President of the Winnipeg Chapter for the Alliance of Equality for Blind Canadians will also be on hand to speak at the rally.




WHO:
UFCW Local 832, President Robert Ziegler
Manitoba Federation of Labour President Kevin Rebeck
Locked-out CNIB workers (Ann Harry & Laura Layton)
Alliance of the Equality for Blind Canadians, Winnipeg President Eric Mackinder
WHAT:
Solidarity Rally and Press Conference regarding the lock-out of CNIB Workers
WHEN:
Thursday, March 18, 2010 3:00 p.m.
WHERE:
CNIB OFFICE, 1080 Portage, Winnipeg, MB (on the sidewalk)

CANADIAN LABOUR-WINNIPEG:

CNIB STRIKERS/LOCKED OUT WORKERS SUPPORTED BY CLIENTS:

The CNIB (Canadian National Institute for the Blind) strike/lockout began yesterday March 15 here in Winnipeg. I have to admit that there is one thing that has always puzzled me about labour law here in Canada. Quite frankly I can't see any advantage to employers being the first to "draw their guns" and declare a lockout on the eve of an impending strike. If anything they should wait until labour "makes the first move" in terms of public support. Labour is certainly always happy to declare that they are locked out as opposed to being on strike, and to me the advantages of this are obvious. Could somebody more familiar with the law enlighten me ?

In any case the union, Local 832 of the United Food and Commercial Workers, has certainly been quick off the bat in garnering public support for their positions. Here, from their website, is a story about how clients of the CNIB have rallied behind the workers that serve them. Rather inspiring actually as management has been rather treacherous to clients in the past while workers have defended them.

Please refer to the Winnipeg Wobbly Blog as well as the Local website for further coverage of this strike.

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Clients who use CNIB Services outraged
Will support striking CNIB staff on picket line.
UFCW Local 832 members working at Canadian Institute for the Blind (CNIB) will have the support of the people they help in Manitoba on the picket line at 1080 Portage Avenue.

Many of the clients that receive assistance from the staff at CNIB are ready to show their support and walk with them in hopes the remaining issue of paid sick leave can be resolved.

“I think it’s appalling that this strike is taking place. The support workers and everyone on strike have been very good to us, and they were there for us when CNIB closed down our specialty store in 2007. So we want them to know they have our support and hopefully the CNIB will put an end to this strike quickly,” said Eric Mackinder who is a client at the CNIB and the Winnipeg Chapter President for the Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians.

The members at CNIB have already agreed to the company’s proposal of a wage freeze in the first year and their proposal of 2.5 per cent in the second year. The unionized staff at CNIB is paid generally $5 less per hour less than other non-profit organizations in the province. The remaining issues are over the reductions to the paid sick leave and long term disability the members have had since their first collective agreement. Both of which the company has stated at the bargaining table are not being abused.

CANADIAN LABOUR-WINNIPEG:

CNIB WORKERS SET TO STRIKE ON MONDAY:

Nineteen employees of the Canadian national Institute for the Blind (CNIB), represented by Local 832 of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), are set to strike this coming Monday, March 15. Contract negotiations have been dragging on for almost a year, and management has proved intransigent despite offers of concessions from the union. Here's the story from the CBC. Many thanks to the Winnipeg Wobbly Blog who alerted Molly to this development and plan to be following the situation as it develops.

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CNIB workers prepare to picket
Workers at Winnipeg's Canadian National Institute for the Blind are preparing to walk off the job on Monday.

Union members on Thursday voted down the CNIB's final contract offer, after negotiating with management for close to a year.

The union is willing to accept a wage freeze in the first year of a new deal but not the proposed reductions to paid sick leave and long-term disability, said United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 832 president Robert Ziegler.

'The company has taken a hard line on a non-issue.'—Robert Ziegler, union president
"The membership is outraged that after spending nearly a year at the bargaining table and being understanding on monetary issues that the company would force a reduction in their health and wellness benefits when it has never been a problem," Ziegler said.

The 19 union members who work at the CNIB perform various duties assisting people living in the province who have visual impairment.

Contract negotiations started in April 2009 and in July 2009, a government-appointed conciliator was brought on to try helping the two sides reach a deal.

"The company has taken a hard line on a non-issue and unfortunately they are demonstrating to the people in the province who need these services that they would rather force our members on a picket line instead of helping them," said Ziegler.

There are no plans to continue negotiations as the company stated this was their final offer, he added.

However, the union is willing to meet with the company over the weekend prior to the Monday morning picket, if they are willing to move off this issue, Ziegler said.

There's been no comment from the CNIB.

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Here is a posting from the website of Local 832 from which much of the article above was derived. Keep tuned to the union's website for further news.

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CNIB members in Manitoba set to strike on Monday
Company pushes members to the streets over non-issue.
UFCW Local 832 members working at the Winnipeg Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) at 1080 Portage voted down the company’s final offer on March 11.

“The membership is outraged that after spending nearly a year at the bargaining table and being understanding on monetary issues that the company would force a reduction in their health and wellness benefits when it has never been a problem” said UFCW Local 832 President Robert Ziegler.

Negotiations started in April 2009 and have been assisted through a government appointed conciliation officer since July 2009 with all the items being agreed upon, including a wage freeze in the first year but the members refuse to budge on CNIB’s stance to change its paid sick leave.

“Our members have been very understanding to the financial constraints that CNIB is currently under. They are long standing employees have been with the company for many years. They have agreed to take a wage freeze and a small increase in the second year of the contract. The only outstanding item is the company’s stance to reducing its sick time pay, which the company admitted during negotiations hasn’t been abused,” said Ziegler.

The 19 members working at the CNIB perform various duties assisting people living in the province who have visual impairment.

“The company has taken a hard line on a non-issue and unfortunately they are demonstrating to the people in the province who need these services that they would rather force our members on a picket line instead of helping them,” said Ziegler.

Currently, members who have five years of service or more are entitled to 15 weeks of 100 per cent paid sick leave should they need it. The company wants to reduce it to 10 days at 100 per cent then whatever days that member has not used to-date under its “sick time cushion” 100 per cent of a potential 10 days but the remaining time will be at 67 percent. Currently, if a member does not use their sick leave it’s not carried over or can be cashed out. The company also proposed a reduction to the long term disability from 67 per cent to 60 per cent of their eligible earnings.

There are no plans to continue negotiations as the company stated this was their final offer. The union is willing to meet with the company over the weekend prior to the Monday morning picket, if they are willing to move off this issue.