Pensioners protest at Province House
Posted May 3, 2010 03:35:55 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
More than 100 angry retired government workers filled the street in front of Province House, upset at pension clawbacks included in the government’s budget.
“We’re retired, we’re not dead,” said David Peters, a past president of the Nova Scotia Government Employees Union.
The group representing 12,000 retired government workers was vocal as they marched around province house.
The group says it’s unfair to cap their cost of living increase at 1.25 per cent each year for the next five years. The change is part of a plan to save money introduced in last month’s budget.
“They have broken the contract that we worked under for up to 35 years and more,” yelled Peters to the crowd. “They have decided to steal our indexing that we worked for.”
Opposition leaders addressed the crowd. Liberal leader Stephen McNeil says they’ve tried to talk sense into the NDP.
“No matter how much logic you use with them, they believe they’re right on everything,” says McNeil. “They believe they’ve got all the answers to all of Nova Scotia’s problems.”
The group says they’ve consulted a lawyer to see if the changes are unconstitutional.
