“We are asking for a fair wage increase,” says Alain Lajoie, business agent for local 2 of the Service Employees International Union, summing up the issue that prompted ten unionized North Glengarry recreation department workers to go on strike August 23.
Members voted 100 per cent against the township’s latest offer, rejecting the municipality’s proposed wage increases in the second and third years of a three-year contract.
While he declined to provide details, Lajoie said the township’s suggested wage increases would not permit workers to keep pace with the cost of living.
Picket lines were to be set up in Island Park in Alexandria Saturday.
The walkout will not affect programs at the Tim Hortons Dome, the HGMH pool, or the use of park grounds, the municipality says. Township recreation programs are unaffected by the strike and will continue as scheduled.
Users who have reservations at the Glengarry Sports Palace, the Maxville & District Sports Complex, or the Sandfield Centre at Island Park may be impacted.
“The Township remains open to renewed talks and welcomes any opportunity for dialogue with union representatives,” says Mayor Jamie MacDonald. “The goal has always been to reach a negotiated agreement and minimize disruption to our residents.”
Some unionized employees have privately expressed frustration because managers have been awarded pay increases that exceeded those offered to unionized workers.
