OAKVILLE, ON – Ahead of a resumption of negotiations between the Town of Oakville and the union representing more than 330 ‘inside’ workers, members of Local 1329 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE 1329) today held a rally and information session a short distance from the Town’s administrative offices.
“We are out here today to let residents know how proud we are to provide them with quality services that they can depend on when they need them, but we also want them to know that the people who provide those services have hardly any meaningful job security,” said CUPE 1329 President Stephen Dingwall.
“Residents are overwhelmingly satisfied with the service we provide, but there is clearly something wrong when people with a 96 per cent customer satisfaction rate have zero per cent job security,” he added.
The collective agreement between the Town of Oakville and CUPE 1329 expired last February. Since then, the parties have been attempting to negotiate a renewal of the collective agreement. Job security provisions, common in collective agreements across the Province, are a key priority for members of CUPE 1329.
The two sides will meet tomorrow and Thursday in an effort to hammer out a new contract with the assistance of a Provincially-appointed conciliation officer.
Dingwall said he hopes today’s information session sends a clear message to the Town of Oakville that they need to take CUPE 1329 members’ priorities seriously.
“We believe a fair contract that protects the quality public services Oakville residents expect and depend on, and that meets the needs of our members and the Town, is possible, as long as the will is there from the Town,” he said.
CUPE 1329 represents more than 330 ‘inside’ workers employed by the Town of Oakville, at 25 different locations including arena and recreation facilities, Central Operations, Oakville Fire Department, Town Hall, Oakville Transit, Oakville Hydro, Harbours and the Oakville Centre for Performing Arts.
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For more information, please contact:
Stephen Dingwall, CUPE 1329 President, 905-330-5071
Kevin Wilson, CUPE Communications, 416-821-6641
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