Originally this site was setup in solidarity with the 1600 striking meat packing workers, members of UFCW Local 1118, at the High River, Alberta Cargill plant.
The workers, had gone on strike July 10, 1997. They reached an agreement and setttled on August 1, 1997.
Their strike page is still available in the ARCHIVE
Along with a detailed article on CARGILL and its international agribusiness.
MAPLE LEAF FOODS STRIKE 1997 - 1998
UFCW 312A
Click here for article and background on this strike that cost hundreds of workers their jobs and saw Maple Leaf Foods close the ill fated Gainers plant.
CAW Local 4050 on Strike Against Marriott Food Services,The strike ended after six long months in December of 1997 shortly before Christmas.
70 food services workers at the Michener Centre in Red Deer, members of Canadian Auto Workers(CAW) Local 4050, have been on strike against Marriott Food Services Ltd. since July 27. ! Send them a message of Solidarity, at this email address: Connell1@netcom.ca
The Michener Center is a provincial Government Facility for the severally handicapped.While the staff at Michner are represented by the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees(AUPE). Food services were contracted out to Versa Foods. Marriott took over last year.
CAW organized the food workers at Versa, and while Versa gave up the contract to Marriott the workers remained. However Marriott did not recognize CAW's succesor rights. The workers are fighting for their first contract, after having had wage cuts of $5 an hour and positions cut by Marriott when they took over.
The Marriott Workers have appealed for support, from unions, the public, relatives of Michener Centre clients and the businesses and citizens of Red Deer.
Marriott is an international food, services and cleaning company, with hotels, food services, cleaning/housekeeping operations in both the private and public sector across North America. In 1996 Marriott had $10 billion dollars in sales with a profit of $629 million.
CUPE Calls for Strike against Edmonton Public School Board, Board Settles with locals.
Three CUPE Locals Solidarity and Militancy forces settlement
Edmonton public school custodial maintanence and support staff have achieved contract gains from the Edmonton school board. The board offered the custodial and maintenance workers last minute contract concessions after the locals held a strike vote. Over 96% of custodial workers, members of Local 474, turned out to vote. 91% of maintenance workers, members of 784, voted as well. The strike vote for Local 474 was 85% in favour despite the boards offer of a last minute deal which the local's negotiating commitee accepted.
On Saturday October 18, members of local 474 ratified a new two year contract which ends August 1998. It included a unique no contracting out clause, which bridges three contracts and lasts five years, from October 1997 to August 2002! For more information on the contract go to:CUPE Local 474.
Edmonton Public Schools maintenance workers, members of CUPE Local 784, rejected the school board's last contract offer Monday, September 29,1997. The 200 maintenance and skilled trades workers voted to mandate their union to call for a government supervised strike vote.
The school district 1500 support staff, members of CUPE Local 3550, voted tonight to support the other two CUPE Locals by tabling a Memorandum of Agreement reached last week until such time as the administration reaches a memorandum of agreement with the two other CUPE Locals.
The maintenance workers are the second school board CUPE local to call a strike vote. Yesterday the 600 custodial workers, members of CUPE Local 474, voted overwhelmingly to call a strike vote.
The three CUPE locals have been engaged in coordinated bargaining with the school board for the past 24 months. While the locals have separate contracts, each local has agreed to a minimal set of demands which include no contracting out, and wage increases to offset the rollbacks made in 1994.
The school board failed to divide the three locals by offering maintenance workers a 1.75% wage increase while offering support staff a 4.5% wage increase, and failing to make any wage offer to custodial workers.
The locals are fighting for no-contracting-out language and job security for permanent and part-time workers in their collective agreements. The board has only offered a letter of intent to custodial workers.
"A letter of intent isn't worth the paper it's written on," says Doug Luellman, president of CUPE Local 474. "We had a letter of intent in 1994. One month later the board carried a motion to contract out support and custodial staff in 1/3 of district schools. We want no contracting-out articles in our collective agreement, not letters of dubious intent."
The maintenance workers have been without a contract for 22 months. The support staff and custodial workers have been without a collective agreement for 13 months.
The last time maintenance and custodial workers were on strike was in 1970. Support staff went on strike in 1990 for union recognition.
Also see the article; School board workers set to take strike vote
in the Edmonton Journal, October 1, 1997
Letters of support can be sent to: cupe474@hotmail.com
Emergency Workers at Edmonton International Airport Settle
175 Emergency workers,fire fighters, emergency response and runway maintenance, administrative and clerical workers at the Edmonton International Airport members of Public Services Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Local 30315 face a potential lock out by Airport management. The lock out was threatened for midnight Friday, October 10, 1997. The dispute has been settled after the union and management met over the weekend in a last ditch effort to settle outstanding contract issues. Union members were offered a 8.5% increase over three years.
Management is also threatening to bring in scabs. The scabs would have four days emergency response training as airport firefighters. PSAC contends this will pose a public danger to those using the airport since most of its firefighters have years of training and experience handling Airport emergencies.
The union has been without a contract for 11 months. The main issues are money, pay equity and staffing levels at the fire hall.
The strike was settled over the Thanksgiving long weekend when the pilots association added pressure by saying it would boycott the airport
for safety reasons. At the Eleventh hour a tentative aggreement was reached avoiding a strike and the ensuing disruption
of service over the holiday weekend.
Elevator Workers Strike in Calgary,& Edmonton Settled
Scabs Threaten safety in Elevator Strike, Edmonton Journal article August 21, 1997
Strike Settled August 23, 1997.Government finds Scabs unqualified Edmonton Journal
Background on the 1997 Alberta Safeway's Strike
The recent Safeways Strike was to Alberta what the UPS Teamster strike was to the United States. The UFCW and BCTWU won the support of the public even if they suffered a pyrrhic victory at the bargaining table. Here are some background articles on the strike.
Page design © Copyright 1997 Eugene W. Plawiuk.
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