Online Mass Membership Meetings – Oct 21 and 22

It’s clear, members of 10 big provincial locals voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike if no fair deal is reached with the province. Altogether, the average vote was 94% in favour.

This is why you are invited to participate in one mass membership meeting (1-hour session) either on October 21 or October 22. This is to prepare for coming job action.

Sessions start at 10 am, 1 pm & 7 pm on both days. No registration is needed, just open this meeting viewing link at the start time of your choice: https://str.encore-ca.events/cupenb-en
All CUPE members are invited, even if you are part of a local who is not in bargaining or considering potential job action. The event is free, no registration is required.

Sessions on 21 October: 10 am, 1 pm, 7 pm
Sessions on 22 October: 10 am, 1 pm, 7 pm
Link to view each session: https://str.encore-ca.events/cupenb-fr/

Facebook event link: https://www.facebook.com/events/4302048526517512/

GNB memo prohibiting land acknowledgements an affront to reconciliation efforts

October 18, 2021, Fredericton, NB – CUPE New Brunswick expresses profound disappointment in the Government of New Brunswick’s recently released memo that prohibits government employees from making land acknowledgements.

“Our union is committed to decolonization and reconciliation, and recognizing the stolen land on which we live is the bare minimum that we can do,” said Dana Wesley, Senior Officer for Indigenous Rights.

CUPE NB supports our members’ efforts to further the goals of reconciliation by making land acknowledgements. The union urges its members to use unequivocally the words “unceded”, “unsurrendered”, and “stolen” to describe the lands upon which we live.

“Any attempt to discipline our members for making land acknowledgements will be met with grievances,” said Steve Drost, President of CUPE NB. “This is an unconscionable directive that flies in the face of reconciliation, and we view it as a violation of the right to free speech.”

CUPE NB members understand that colonization is not a thing of the past, but that it continues into the present. The Government of New Brunswick’s memo is an example of this colonial power. In seeking to prohibit employees from using factually accurate words like “unceded” and “unsurrendered”, the memo implies that this land was ceded or surrendered. This is a colonial attempt to undermine Indigenous sovereignty. Moreover, it infringes on our members’ right to free expression, and it attempts to pit public sector workers against Indigenous communities.

“That New Brunswick exists on the stolen, unceded and unsurrendered lands of the Mi’kmaq, Wolastoqey and Peskotomuhkati is not up for debate – it is a fact,” Drost said.

On behalf of the 28,000 CUPE members of New Brunswick, many of whom are Indigenous, we affirm our solidarity with Indigenous communities in New Brunswick in their struggle for justice.

LPN Reclassified to NBNU – Higgs is doing union busting against CUPE

Fredericton, NB, October 7, 2021 – Health care workers denounce the government’s unilateral action to carve out Licenced Practical Nurses from CUPE Local 1252, representing close to 10,000 healthcare workers in New Brunswick.

CUPE learned today, via a letter from Treasury Board, that Higgs’ ordered over 1,900 LPNS to be reclassified from CUPE into the NB Nurses Union. This move takes effect tomorrow, October 8.

“This is union-busting at its worst. Higgs is doing this because more than 94% of healthcare workers voted for a strike. They voted to end his mismanagement of our public healthcare system and to end his abuse of front-line workers,” said Norma Robinson, President of CUPE Local 1252.  “This retribution is an insult to the rights of all healthcare workers to free collective bargaining. Workers told him over and over to fix the staffing crisis at the bargaining table, not through divide and conquer tactics,” added Robinson.

CUPE Local 1252 is among 10 CUPE locals in New Brunswick who recently obtained strong strike votes and are fighting to get fair wages for front-line workers.

The government’s reclassification letter came less than five hours after CUPE had written to the Premier this morning, telling the premier they would not call members to strike in the next 14 days in order to protect the public’s safety because of increased COVID-19 cases.

In 2018, the provincial government began a job review of the LPN classifications that had been agreed to previously in bargaining with Local 1252. “It’s been three years since, and the government still refuses to implement the conclusions of the JAQ process, the “Job Analysis Questionnaire,” which would have resulted in a significant wage increase for LPNs,” said Robinson. Since then, Higgs remained steadfast on the opinion that the LPNs’ skillset had not changed so he could deny them proper compensation.

“Higgs is wrong to think this will silence the voice of those professional frontline workers who took a stand to stop the erosion of public healthcare,” concluded Robinson.

CUPE Local 1252 represents close to 10,000 healthcare workers in NB, over 1,900 of which are LPNs.

CCNB workers vote 96% in favour of strike action

Fredericton, October 1st 2021 – Local 5026, which represents the francophone community colleges (CCNB) operational employees (i.e. trades, clerical, warehouse, building maintenance, engineers, lab assistants, and custodians), voted massively for a strike.

“The members have spoken loud and clear and are showing their displeasure with Premier Higgs’ inaction,” said Brian Nadeau, President of Local 5026.

“Eighty-four employees voted, and the Local is 96% in favour of strike action. 81 members voted in favour of strike action,” said Christine Goguen, Vice-President of Local 5026.

This strike vote follows that of CUPE Local 1252 healthcare workers who obtained strong job action votes last Wednesday. Local 5026 is the ninth to conclude its vote among the 10 locals engaged in coordinated bargaining with the centralized bargaining team.

“We are a smaller group in terms of numbers, but as others, we also need wage adjustments that go beyond inflation. We have lost too much ground in the last 10 years,” said the vice-president.

The local believe that a strike in their sector would lead to the closure of the NBCCs. “Without the custodial workers, the tradespeople, the NBCCs will likely not open,” she said. “One thing is certain, we don’t want a strike, but we are at the end of our rope, we want to be heard and respected,” concluded Christine Goguen.

Our Letter to Premier Higgs

Below is a letter from the Centralized bargaining team to Premier Higgs, following his correspondence of September 27th.  In it, we re-affirm we look forward to going back to the table, but that we will only do so once he removes the concessions. It’s in the Premier’s hands to ensure there are no further disruptions to our public services.

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NB hospital workers say “Enough is Enough”

Fredericton September 29, 2021 – CUPE NB and the leaders of the CUPE Centralized Bargaining Team held an online press conference to announce the strike vote results of healthcare workers of Local 1252, the NB Council of Hospital Unions (NBCHU).

“Over 7,279 members of Local 1252 came out to vote, and 94% of them voted YES,” said Norma Robinson, president of Local 1252 – NBCHU. “Participation was good. Out of everybody who showed up to vote, less than 344 voted NO. The membership is clear: they want the Premier to fix our healthcare system, and that starts at the bargaining table,” added Robinson.

Out of the 10 provincial locals conducting strike votes, eight CUPE locals have now completed their votes.

“There are just two locals left to vote. To date, all locals part of the Centralized Bargaining Team who conducted votes had results between 83% and 98 % YES votes,” said Stephen Drost, President of CUPE NB.

“It’s time to fix our public services and help the people who deliver them,” said Robinson.

CUPE Local 1190 (General Labour and Trades) and 5026 (Francophone CCNB) will have their votes done and counted no later than by October 5, 2021.

“What we are doing is trying to tackle head-on the rising inequalities happening in our province. Workers, unionized and non-unionized, deserve a fair deal from this government,” explained Drost.

The CUPE Centralized Bargaining Team took time to denounce Premier Higgs’s wasteful use of tax dollars in anti-union propaganda, such as province-wide attack radio ads and newspaper ads. “Instead of dealing with the crisis, Premier Higgs is shamefully sending New Brunswicker’s money to US radio stations, such as Q96 in Presque Isle, Maine, to attack NB public service workers part of CUPE,” said Drost. “We are all tired of empty promises, inaction on the increased cost of living issues, and wasted tax dollars in anti-union propaganda,” said Drost.

“Front-line workers have endured so much with so little support, it’s time the government took them seriously. Decades of little to no wage increases, along with a major recruitment and retention crisis, can and must be dealt with at the bargaining table through fair wages,” concluded Drost.

Major staffing crisis in nursing homes requires immediate action

Fredericton, September 27, 2021 – The NB Council of Nursing Home Unions (NBCNHU), representing more than 4,600 nursing home workers in our province, is demanding immediate action from Premier Higgs to solve the understaffing crisis in long-term care. The NBCNHU held an online press conference to demand Premier Higgs put in place a 4$ wage increase for all CUPE classifications in long-term care homes.

“Residents are not getting the minimum care hours guaranteed under the Nursing Homes Act because of the critical lack of staff” denounced Sharon Teare, President of the NBCNHU. “It’s time the Premier made some bold moves to fix the crisis and got ahead of the curve,” said Teare.

In August 2021, The Federal government promised to invest $9 billion to address the dangerous shortfalls in Canada’s long-term-care sector that were exposed by the pandemic. This includes a 25$ per-hour minimum wage for personal support workers (PSWs) across Canada. On average, CUPE nursing home workers in New Brunswick earn 21$ per hour, which is among the lowest wages in this sector in the country.

“The Federal government will pitch in to do its part to correct the injustices, what is Higgs waiting for,” asked Teare. “We say it is about time Higgs did his part. Québec, Ontario, and many other provinces improved wages for long-term-care workers to fix their recruitment and retention crisis,” she added.

Compared to other Canadian provinces, New Brunswick still is in the bottom when it comes to investing in the front lines during this pandemic.

“Last week, the members in Edmundston sounded the alarm on residents getting only 1.8 hours of daily hands-on care because of understaffing. This week, we got similar reports coming from Bathurst, Saint John, Woodstock, and in so many other places.  Seniors are going without baths for whole weeks, they stay in bed all day and are even dying alone, because of serious short staffing. It’s getting worse as months go by,” said Teare.

During the conference, the NBCNHU presented a “Letter of Agreement,” prepared and signed so that the Premier can immediately put in place a 4$ increase for nursing home workers. “We just need his signature on this sheet, which would then be added to the NBCNHU collective agreement. This would make sense, as it brings workers to the 25$ an hour adjustment which is coming our way for 2021-2022,” said Teare.[1]

The NBCNHU ended its conference by explaining how receiving federal funds requires cooperation from the provincial government. “Higgs should not waste any more time to improve the situation of workers and wait to be the last one to act, as he did on childcare funding,” added Teare. “The crisis is real, but the money is there. All we need is political will from Fredericton. Working families and our most vulnerable need to be prioritized” concluded Teare.

[1] See the Federal Liberal Party Media Release – August 19, 2021, https://liberal.ca/liberals-move-forward-to-deliver-better-care-for-canadas-seniors/ and the related Fiscal and costing plan: https://liberal.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/292/2021/09/Forward-For-Everyone-Financial-and-Costing-Plan.pdf

 

Four More Locals Take Strong Strike Votes

September 22, 2021 – CUPE NB and the leaders of the CUPE Centralized Bargaining Team held an online press conference today to announce the results of four more locals having completed strike votes. Out of the 10 provincial locals conducting strike votes, seven CUPE locals have now completed their votes.

“With this strong mandate, front-line workers are saying to Premier Higgs to listen carefully. New Brunswick workers are the least paid public sector workers in Canada. They want and deserve a fair deal now,” said Stephen Drost, President of CUPE NB.

The results of locals 1251, 1253, 1418, and 2745 were counted Monday. They follow the same patterns established last week by locals 1840, 1866, and 5017 who gave strong strike mandates.

“Despite the difficulties created by the pandemic, close to 9,400 CUPE members have already cast a ballot in this vote. Members are clear. It’s time to fix our public services and the people who deliver them. The best place to start doing so is at the bargaining table through fair wages,” said Drost.

CUPE Locals Contract Expiry Date YES % vote Turnout
1251 – NB institutional services and care June 2017 98% 774 voted
1418 – Rehabilitation, therapy and RCPO August 2017 92% 1,106 voted
1253 – NB school district unions March 2019 97% 2,747 voted
2745 – NB educational support staff February 2018 91% 4,479 voted

CUPE Local 1252, which represents close to 11,000 Healthcare workers, begins their vote tomorrow, September 23rd, until the 25th. Most votes will be conducted just outside their workplaces. CUPE Local 1190 and 5017 which represent more than 1,800 workers together, will post voting dates soon.

 

Local 1840, 1866 and 5017 Take Strong Strike Votes

Moncton, September 14, 2021 – CUPE NB and the leaders of the CUPE Centralized Bargaining Team held a press conference today to announce the results of the first completed strike votes. Out of the 10 provincial locals conducting strike votes, three CUPE locals concluded their votes.

“Those CUPE members are giving a snapshot of what’s to come. They are sending a strong message to the government with a strong, strong strike vote,” said Stephen Drost, President of CUPE NB.

The results by region are as follows:

  • Local 1840 (NB Court Stenographers) – 96% in favour of a strike, 96% turnout out of 73 members
  • Local 1866 (WorkSafe NB) – 83% in favour of a strike. 88% participation out of 138 members
  • Local 5017 (NB Community Colleges) – 93 % in favour of a strike. 100% participation out of 89 members.

Local 5017 vote count

Local 1840 vote count

Local 1866 vote count

“These members are sending a strong message, and it’s foreshadowing what is to come. It is also a scathing review of the government’s inability to recognize front-line workers. Workers want a fair deal, not empty promises and propaganda in the papers,” said Drost.

“Front-Line workers have endured so much with so little support, and it’s clear that they are ready to strike if needed so the government takes them seriously. Decades of little to no wage increases, along with a major recruitment and retention crisis, can and must be dealt with at the bargaining table through fair wages,” said Stephen Drost.

These 3 locals had received proper employer-provided lists to conduct a proper vote respecting the PSLRA provisions.

Local 1252 (Healthcare) and Local 5026 (CCNB) will conduct their votes later in September. Local 1252 is taking their vote on the 23, 24, and 25 of September.

Critical shortage of staff in Edmundston Nursing Home

Edmundston, September 14, 2021 – The union representing workers at Les Résidences Jodin nursing home in Edmundston is sounding the alarm on the significant understaffing in their workplace. Local 5108, which represents more than 225 workers at the home, is calling for an independent investigation into the numerous contraventions of the Nursing Homes Act regarding the minimum number of hours of daily care to be provided to residents. EXCLUSIF - Moments difficiles aux Résidences Jodin

“Day after day, the management of Les Résidences Jodin is seriously failing to provide the 2.89 hours of direct daily care for each resident,” said Chantal Montreuil, president of Local 5108 and a care attendant for 20 years. “We are running so short that the average direct care hours per resident is closer to 1.8 hours per day. This is unacceptable and shameful,” she said.

“Last weekend, there were only two workers for every thirty residents. This is unheard of. Normally, it takes at least five workers to provide the bare minimum,” says Jason St. Onge, a care attendant and Vice-President of Local 5108.

The local is asking that the investigation also looks at the work of the Department of Social Development inspectors, who are supposed to be looking at counting the time seniors are being cared for. “In our opinion, the home’s regular inspector, Louis Lévesque, is not thorough enough. We have never seen him make a surprise visit. Each time he visits – what a coincidence! – the management hides the usual lack of staff by bringing in more staff on the day of his visit,” says Chantal Montreuil. “Why doesn’t the inspector compile the schedules of the employees over the last few months to show the minister what is really happening here?”

“Because of the lack of staff, their one shower a week is often put aside, they are only helped out of bed once a day, they eat cold food. The wait for care is much longer than before,” says Sharon Teare, President of the NB Council of Nursing Home Unions.

“The night staff often work alone for 30 residents and have to wait for help from another staff member who is assigned to another home to help the single staff member with the care. Normally, they are expected to have two employees for every 30 residents at night,” confirmed Jason St. Onge. “The Department should intervene, and quickly, ” he added.

“The Department must intervene because staff shortages are rampant throughout the province and it is getting worse as months go by,” concluded Sharon Teare, President of the New Brunswick Council of Nursing Home Unions.