Wages & Increased Cost of Living

“Across Canada, household costs in 2021 went on an upward ride unlike anything seen in nearly a generation… The Bank of Canada forecasted inflation worsening in late 2021 to around 4.8 per cent—a three-decade high—and continuing above target levels well into the new year.” - Maclean's magazine

In Ottawa we’ve see the cost of living go up through rising energy costs (heating bills, gasoline), groceries, housing, public transportation and more.

Pension Plan & Secure Retirement

Recent statistics show that the Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) provided retirees with an average of under $620 a month.  Most experts agree CPP isn’t enough to live on. In our last round of bargaining, we began to address retirement security by winning a pension plan. Starting in April, we will be contributing 1% of our wages to the pension plan and the employers will be matching it with an additional 1%. It’s a start, but still not enough for a secure retirement.

Subcontracting & Job Security

Some cleaning companies are undermining our Collective Agreement by subcontracting out work. This practice erodes the standards we’ve fought hard to win and threatens union members’ job security by giving work we should be doing to non-union workers at a much lower cost. We can protect members and continue to raise standards for all workers by introducing stronger language in our Collective Agreement that stops companies from using subcontracting.

Paid Sick / Personal Days

Doug Ford's Conservative government has consistently failed to protect workers during this pandemic. One area where promises have not been kept is adequate paid sick days. This may change with a provincial election coming in the summer. If the government introduces a law providing all workers with a minimum number of paid sick days, the only way we will get those days in addition to what we already have, is if our new Collective Agreement specifically says so.

Benefits

Vacation Pay

Some companies provide vacation pay on every paycheque, while others let it accrue then pay it out when you take your vacation from work. We may need to choose ONE practice moving forward.

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