CUPE to make donation to hurricane relief efforts in Port aux Basques – Wednesday at 10 a.m.
On behalf of the members of CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador, a donation of $20,000 will be made to the Salvation Army for hurricane relief efforts. The donation will be presented by CUPE NL President Sherry Hillier at an event to be held in Channel-Port aux Basques on Wednesday, November 16, 2022.
“Hurricane Fiona was devastating for our members in the Port aux Basques area and many other people in the community. Many have lost everything and it’s heartbreaking,” says Hillier. “We want to do what we can to help and hope that this donation will help this beautiful community get back on its feet.”
“CUPE locals across the province and our executive board gave generously to our ‘Fiona Solidarity Fund’ so that we can make this donation. It’s our way of giving back to a community that we love dearly and that has lost so much,” says Hillier.
LOCATION: 98 Main Street W., Channel-Port aux Basques
TIME: Wednesday, November 16, at 10 a.m.
SPEAKERS: Sherry Hillier, CUPE NL president; and David and Beverly Harvey, Salvation Army representatives
Across the province, CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador proudly represents more than 6,300 working women and men in 60 locals.The union represents workers in health care, education, public housing, provincial libraries, municipalities, university, child care, recycling, social services and much more.
Photo: portauxbasques.ca
City of St. John’s municipal workers ratify new collective agreement
Members of the Canadian union of Public Employees (CUP) Local 1289 in St. John’s have voted in favour of ratifying a new four-year collective agreement at a meeting held Tuesday, October 11, 2022.
The new deal includes a wage increase of 11% over four years, a signing bonus, improved sick leave provisions for part-time workers, enhancements to bereavement leave, and guaranteed overtime for scheduled events.
“I’d like to thank our bargaining committee who worked hard on behalf of our members to reach this deal,” says CUPE 1289 President Erin Woodfine. “We look forward to continuing to partner with the City to provide quality community services to residents and businesses.”
CUPE 1289 approximately 380 inside municipal workers with the City of St. John’s.
Rebuilding After Fiona: an Act of Solidarity
Friends,
While we begin the recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona, we must take time to acknowledge the countless number of our members who kept going to work to assist in the clean-up, take care of our children, the elderly and the sick.
Our public sector workers demonstrate time and time again how they keep this province and our communities going.
On behalf of the entire CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador Executive Board we say thank you.
However, for some of our members the devastation of Fiona has irrevocably changed their lives. Some have lost everything and need our assistance. We have an opportunity to demonstrate solidarity.
CUPE NL has established a Fiona Solidarity Fund to help our union family in their time of greatest need. We are appealing to our members and locals to also contribute to this fund so that we can help as many people as possible.
Cheques should be made out to CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador and can be mailed to or dropped off at:
CUPE St. John’s Office
102-15 International Place
St. John’s, NL
A1A 0L4
The Fiona Solidarity Fund will be available to members whose lives have been impacted and would benefit from financial assistance.
You can apply for this assistance by sending an email to Sherry Hillier (sherryh@cupe.ca) with your name, local number, contact info and a brief summary of how you were impacted.
Yours in solidarity,
Sherry Hillier
President of CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador
A message on behalf of the CUPE NL Executive Board.
Tentative agreement reached between municipal workers and City of St. John’s
Inside municipal workers with the City of St. John’s, represented by the Canadian union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 1289, reached a tentative agreement with their employer on Thursday.
“It was a good round of bargaining,” says Erin Woodfine, president of CUPE 1289, representing approximately 380 inside municipal workers. “The employer listened to our concerns, and issues were discussed and addressed in detail. Overall, it was a very respectful round of bargaining for both sides.”
Details of the contract will not be made available until it has been presented to union members, and both sides have ratified the agreement. The union’s bargaining committee will present the tentative collective agreement to the membership and a ratification vote will take place on Tuesday, October 11.
“I’d like to thank our bargaining committee who worked hard on behalf of our members to reach this deal,” says Woodfine. “We are pleased to recommend this tentative agreement to members for acceptance.”
A solidarity message from Mark Hancock and Candace Rennick during Hurricane Fiona recovery
A solidarity message to CUPE members across Atlantic Canada and the Maritimes from CUPE National President Mark Hancock and CUPE National Secretary-treasurer Candace Rennick.
Sisters, Brothers, and Friends:
As the recovery from the destruction of storm Fiona begins, we are only starting to comprehend the full extent of the damages. We have seen the devastating images of homes being swept away out to sea, roofs and other debris being stripped off homes and buildings, countless powerlines damaged, and the loss of hundreds of trees that have been staples in so many communities for decades.
Our hearts are with all of you in the Atlantic and Maritimes provinces and Quebec’s Îles-de-la-Madeleine.
While workers from affected communities are removing debris and restoring transportation links and power lines, we want to express our support to all of you. We know that a lot of CUPE members are working around the clock as healthcare, paramedics, and municipal and energy workers while personally being impacted by this natural disaster.
We hope that you, your families, and your friends are safe. And by standing together and supporting one another, we know you will rebuild, and we will be there to support you as you do.
In solidarity,
Mark Hancock
CUPE National President
Candace Rennick
CUPE National Secretary-Treasurer
Consoeurs, confrères et amis,
Alors que débute le nettoyage des débris que la tempête Fiona a laissé derrière elle, nous commençons à peine à mesurer l’étendue des dommages. Nous avons vu les images dévastatrices de maisons emportées par la mer, de toits et de débris arrachés de maisons et d’édifices; d’innombrables lignes électriques endommagées et la perte de centaines d’arbres faisant partie du paysage de tant de communautés depuis des décennies.
Nos pensées sont avec vous tous en Atlantique et dans les Maritimes, tout comme aux Îles-de-la-Madeleine au Québec.
Alors que les travailleuses et travailleurs des communautés affectées retirent les débris de toute sorte, rétablissent les liaisons de transport et le courant électrique, nous voulons que vous sachiez que nous sommes avec vous. Nous savons que plusieurs membres du SCFP travaillent sans relâche comme travailleurs et travailleuses dans les secteurs de la santé, du paramédical, du municipal et de l’énergie tout en étant affectés personnellement par cette catastrophe naturelle.
Nous espérons que vous, vos familles et amis êtes en sécurité. En se serrant les coudes tous ensemble, nous savons que vous allez rebâtir et nous serons là pour vous appuyer.
En toute solidarité,
Le président national,
Mark Hancock
La secrétaire-trésorière nationale,
Candace Rennick
CUPE 2099 ratifies collective agreement with City of Mount Pearl
Members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 2099 voted this evening in favour of ratifying a new collective agreement with the City of Mount Pearl, putting an end to an 11 week-long strike. The municipal workers will return to work Wednesday morning.
The collective agreement is effective retroactively from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2026. The deal includes a modest wage increase, a signing bonus, and no concessions.
“Our members are looking forward to getting back to serving the community they love,” says CUPE 2099 President Ken Turner, “and we’ll be working with the employer to see that the agreed upon ‘return to work’ is implemented, ensuring a smooth transition back into the workplace.”
“We believe this is a fair deal for our members, the city, and residents,” says Turner, who thanked the bargaining committee for their hard work and praised members for their support and solidarity.
CUPE 2099 represents more than 200 municipal workers who work in recreation services, administration, taxation and finance, road maintenance, water and sewage, facilities maintenance, landscape maintenance, engineering, planning, and more.
CUPE and the City of Mount Pearl reach a Tentative Agreement
After a long week of conciliation meetings, the Canadian Union of Public Employees and the City of Mount Pearl have reached a tentative agreement. The bargaining team for CUPE Local 2099, representing the City’s municipal workers, has agreed to present a tentative agreement to the membership for a vote.Read More
This Labour Day, let’s celebrate our public sector workers
The following sponsored article appears in Saltwire newspapers across the province this week and next, including The Telegram and the West Coast Wire.
From health care workers to municipal staff, public sector workers are there when we need them most.
Labour Day is a time to be thankful for public services and the workers who provide them. Public services in Newfoundland and Labrador are indispensable — it’s hard to imagine how we could survive without them.
From the health care workers who care for our seniors and clean our hospitals, to the municipal workers who make sure our water is safe to drink, public sector workers are there when we need them most.
What would we do without the bus drivers that get our kids to school safely, or the hospital workers who take care of us when we are sick? Or without librarians to spread the love of books to young readers, and faculty to guide lifelong learning at our universities?
Unfortunately, in recent times public services in Newfoundland and Labrador have been under attack by our own provincial government.
Premier Andrew Furey’s “big reset” contains cuts to public sector workers and the critical services they provide. Instead of committing to universal, public health care, the Health Accord for Newfoundland and Labrador seems to be pointing towards the path of privatization.
Now Premier Furey is floating the idea of publicly funded, privately-operated health care services, after a meeting with Ontario Premier Doug Ford and other conservative premiers in the Atlantic Region.
CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador will not stand by and watch our public services get dismantled, and our health care sold off to the highest bidder. Privatization will not solve staffing issues when we are amid a recruitment and retention crisis.
The fundamental job of good government is delivering public services for all, and we will continue to push this government to do the right thing, like taking long-term care facilities out of the hands of private corporations.
We will continue to lobby for improved senior care — 4.1 hours of direct care per resident per day — to be enshrined in legislation.
We will defend workers’ rights, including the right to a decent pension, so that families will be cared for into retirement.
CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador will continue to fight for good jobs with better wages, safer workplaces, paid sick days, affordable housing, and accessible childcare and senior care. We will be there to fight for a higher minimum wage, improved income support and a stronger social safety net.
We will continue to push for a society where no one is left behind.
On behalf of our 6,300 CUPE members across the province, we wish you a safe and happy Labour Day.
Sherry Hillier
President, CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador
Happy Labour Day to CUPE NL members and all workers
Listen to our Labour Day radio message! Playing until September 5 on stations across the province.
I’m Sherry Hillier, President of C U P E Newfoundland and Labrador.
On behalf of our members, I would like to wish everyone a safe and happy Labour Day Weekend.
To our members and front line workers, thank you for continuing to deliver the quality public services we all depend on. CUPE will continue to fight for a province with good jobs, access to public health care and an economy that makes life more equal and more affordable for everyone.
CUPE Newfoundland and Labrador would like to wish you all a safe and happy Labour Day weekend.
