Several unions sign new deals in region, across the province
By MEDICINE HAT NEWS on January 17, 2023.
https://www.medicinehatnews.com@MedicineHatNews A late-year summary of collective bargaining settlements shows large wage increases in construction and food processing, as well as some new contracts in the southeast region. The County of Forty Mile and its 48 workers represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local No. 3395, have a new four-year deal that includes a new wage grid when it was ratified in late September. Increases of 2 per cent per year follow until the end of 2026. Also in the municipal sphere, the City of Grande Prairie and its 650 unionized employees have a three-year deal that provides annual raises between 1.7 and 1.9 per cent. The City of Medicine Hat’s contract with 800 inside, outside and transit workers represented by CUPE, expired on Dec. 31, 2022. Three major settlements in food production sector were filed by the United Food and Commercial Workers, Local No. 401, in the December summary provided by Alberta Jobs Ministry. About 170 workers at Cavendish Farms potato processing plant in Lethbridge will see raises in the 3 per cent range in each of the first three years of a five-year contract, then a total of 5.75 per cent in the final two years. Workers at JBS Brooks meatpacking plant agreed last February to an immediate $3.40 per hour increase, then an additional 50 cents per hour raise each year until 2028. Also in Lethbridge, Heaven Hills Distilling, formerly Black Velvet, came to terms will 40 unionized workers in a four-year deal that shows annual raises of 2.25 to 2.75 per cent until 2025. On the construction front, province-wide agreements for major projects saw about 1,500 members of the Operating Engineers and Bricklayer unions accept a 7.5 per cent wage bump this year, then 4.6 and 3.6 per cent annual increases in respective but similar agreements. Raises for 91 members of the Operating Engineers at the Prairie Mines coal mine near Sheerness accepted a total 10.5 per cent raise over the next four years. Machinists Local 99 members employed by Leavitt Machinery received raises of 4 or 8 per cent to start three-year deal that ends with two years with 2 per cent increases. 13-12
