Your Bargaining Team has been waiting for some positive news before giving an update. Our last bargaining session and subsequent update was February 2017. At that time we made it very clear to the employer on day three of that session that we would not meet with them again without first receiving their monetary offer.
Over the last five months, your Bargaining Team has been working diligently with senior PIPSC management to work with senior CFIA management to re-engage in meaningful bargaining.
Your bargaining team was informed, by an S&A member, that at a recent CFIA town hall session which took place in British Columbia, a state of bargaining question was posed to the President of the CFIA, who responded that the CFIA had just recently received their bargaining mandate from the Treasury Board.
This is good news that it reconfirms your bargaining team decision to withdraw in February as we saved countless union dues on bargaining sessions that could not have resulted in an agreement and that this may finally signal the possibility that we can continue that bargaining process with CFIA management in the future.
Your bargaining team will continue to focus on improving pay (including the SR conversion), career development & training, earlier vacation accrual, more flexibility for people with families and scientific integrity.
Our preference is to negotiate a fair collective agreement; however, at this time it depends on whether the Employer is serious about reaching a deal with our group that includes a fair pay proposal including a market adjustment to address long standing pay issues within the Group.
We will keep you informed of further developments.
Your Bargaining Team