FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 11, 2002
Employer team needs new mandate to bargain: Casselman
TORONTO - Negotiators for the Ontario government need a new mandate to bargain a collective agreement with striking Ontario Public Service employees, Leah Casselman says.
“This strike could be settled in 48 hours if the government would give its negotiators the Ernie Eves mandate rather than the Mike Harris mandate,” said Casselman, president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union. “The issues are simple enough - all the employer needs is the will to settle.”
OPSEU members are seeking “normal labour relations” with their employer, Casselman said.
“The issues on the bargaining table at the beginning of this round would never have caused a strike with a normal employer,” she said. “It’s time for whoever is really in charge of Management Board of Cabinet to snap out of it.”
Talks continue between OPSEU and the government, but progress has been slow since bargaining began April 2. The employer is still demanding major pension and benefit concessions, and has moved at a glacial pace to offer improvements for the more than 10,000 temporary contract employees in the public service.
OPSEU plans a rally in Toronto April 15 to mark the swearing-in of Premier-elect Ernie Eves and his Cabinet.
“Obviously we hope we have a contract before Monday comes, but if not, we’ll be sending a clear message to Mr. Eves that our strike is the first test of whether he really is the ‘kinder, gentler’ Premier he said he would be during his leadership race.”
The strike by 45,000 OPSEU members began March 13.
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For more information:
Randy Robinson (416) 788-9134
Katie FitzRandolph (416) 448-7440
