Most of the news outlets continue to focus on the negotiations between the City and the inside workers (CUPE 15). For ongoing coverage, see:
“Inside staff respond to offer” (Vancouver Sun, August 28, 2007, pp. B1, B6)
“Union leader calls for mediator” (The Province, August 28, 2007, p. A6)
“Indoor workers prepared to cut own deal” (Metro Vancouver, August 28, 2007, p. 3) [not available on the web]
“Union, city want a deal” (24 Hours, August 28, 2007, p. 3)
“City of Vancouver receives counter offer from striking inside workers” (CBC British Columbia, August 27, 2007)
Also appearing in today’s Sun is a column by CUPE BC President Barry O’Neill entitled “City’s failure to negotiate keeps its workers on strike” (August 28, 2007, p. A13).
O’Neill summarizes CUPE’s position on the current labour dispute:
“In many ways, this strike has been about the right of unions to represent the concerns of its members at the bargaining table. The city’s refusal to acknowledge this right is what has pushed Vancouver civic and the library workers on strike and continues to keep them there, disrupting public services, our city and countless lives.”
He goes on to quote the 2007 Supreme Court ruling related to Bill 29:
“The right to bargain collectively with an employer enhances the human dignity, liberty and autonomy of workers by giving them the opportunity to influence the establishment of workplace rules and thereby gain some control over a major aspect of their lives, namely, their work.”
We strongly recommend reading O’Neill’s column which reminds us of the “big picture” issues at stake.