Deal reached with BC Place workers
Posted Nov 2, 2011 12:07:29 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – CFL fans heading to the Grey Cup at the newly-renovated BC Place Stadium on November 27th won’t have to walk through a picket line. Unionized workers have ratified a near-one-year deal with PavCo.
The near-650 workers had been without a contract since the end of May but the Karen Tankard with the BCGEU says employees voted yes to a one-year deal by 74 per cent. The contract is good until the end of May 2012.
Tankard tells us they agreed to just a year because they knew BC Place would re-open after roof renovations were finished.
“We wanted to have the opportunity to see what the new operation’s desires for BC Place was going to be, so we wanted to do a short-term [deal] in case there needed to be any quick changes based on what happened with the new facility and their operational needs,” she explains.
She adds workers secured improved language on harassment and scheduling, but won’t get raises for two years. “Because they work for a Crown corporation they are subject to the zero-mandate provisions, which means they have to serve out a two-year wage freeze.”
Tankard notes food and beverage workers employed by Centerplate at BC Place still don’t have a contract but will go back to the bargaining table in December.
