No lockout at Oland, Access-A-Buses hit the roads
Posted Feb 20, 2012 06:06:54 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Employees at the Oland Brewery are headed back to work and Metro Transit managers are hitting the road today.
Brewery managers were ready to lock the unionized workers out today over a contract dispute, but the two sides reached an agreement yesterday afternoon.
Brewery spokesperson Wade Keller says the company is pleased the workers have signed the new seven-year deal.
“It’s a deal that will allow the brewery to be more competitive, not only with other brewers, but also within our Labatt network,” he said. “It also provides employees with an increase in wages and some other benefits.”
While that labour dispute ended without any job action, the strike by Metro Transit workers is entering its third week with a partial resumption of Access-A-Bus service.
Metro Transit managers will drive the buses for transit users who need transportation to and from medical and specialist appointments.
Striking transit workers are delaying the buses for 10 minutes at Metro Transit’s garages, but under a deal worked out with management, the buses are leaving 10 minutes ahead of time, so there should be no effect on the bus schedule.
The two sides remain far apart on the issue of rostering, and Amalgamated Transit Union Local 508 president Ken Wilson says he has no plans to return to the bargaining table.
“(Conciliator) Ken Zwicker assured me that the director, Eddie Robar, said he still needs rostering,” said Wilson. “So what’s the sense of going back, if rostering’s still on the table?”
In other labour disputes across HRM, Dalhousie University’s faculty association is also unhappy about the way conciliated talks ended last week, and the members have voted in favour of striking. Pensions and wages remain the main issues of contention between the two sides.
The NSGEU says it will hold a strike vote soon for 3800 health care workers employed by Capital Health after talks ended last week with no deal. The two sides are expected to begin conciliated talks.
Capital Health will join the eight other district health authorities across Nova Scotia this week to begin negotiating 18 collective agreements with CUPE.
