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By Tyler Marr

Burnout, wage increase top concerns for CUPE Local 600 as mediation fails

Sep 10, 2019 | 2:16 PM

After mediation failed between CUPE Local 600 and the provincial government’s public service commission, the union is touring the province to hear from and discuss the fallout with its members.

Local 600 represents close to 385 social service and central service workers across the province. The employees range from support and community workers to maintenance and trade people.

Since 2017, the union has been at the bargaining table and had 29 meeting dates. The parties arrived at an impasse in June and the labour board appointed a mediator. Three days of talks failed to find a resolution.

President Jacalyn Luterbach said Local 600 members have not had a raise since 2015 and wages are significantly behind inflation and the cost of living. She said the employer is not willing to look at anything more than they have tabled.

Beyond wages, the union wants professional certification fees covered for social workers, occupational and physiotherapists to fall in line with other public health sector employees.

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Further, a schedule change is sought as workplace burnout, she said, has reached a critical level as the employees are subject to long and back-to-back shifts. She said this is damaging work-life balance and hurting staff morale.

“They have very little time off and away from work to catching up on the everyday home life,” she said. “The result of this burnout is causing an increase in sick time, excessive overtime, overuse of relief staff.”

She said it has come to the point where the employer is having to mandate work and force people to work double shifts.

National Staff Representative Justin Mercier said many employees are working eight hours, and minutes before their shift ends, are asked to work another eight hours as no relief can be found.

“It is getting to the point where people don’t even care about the money anymore,” he said. “The environment is so unbearable that people are having to use their sick time in order to get that break away from work.”

He said relief workers are no longer picking up the phone and the employer is forcing junior people to work double shifts. He said many employees work with clients with intellectual needs and in high-stress environments, which requires workers to be well-rested and attentive.

“There are so many reasons why the schedule is not working,” Mercier said, adding the union wants a move to a 12 hour schedule. He said it would benefit the members, clients and employer.

“It allows our members to spend more time with the clients to get them on outings. We feel it would address some of the employer issues as they are having a hard time calling relief.”

He said many employees work six-day stretches. The first three are day shifts and the next three are nights. He said the schedule change would come at no cost to the employer.

On the wage increase, Mercier said the demand is reasonable as the members just want wages that keep up with inflation and the cost of living.

“Our members have waited for a wage increase since 2015, that is way too long to wait for any kind of increase or improvements to their collective agreement,” he said.

The union wants to find a solution as soon as possible.

—

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter:@JournoMarr