Members of the Society's Bruce Power local have overwhelmingly voted in favour of ratifying their new collective agreement with the employer. The agreement, which was unanimously recommended by the union’s bargaining team, comes into effect immediately.
"We are proud of this agreement as it addresses our members’ priorities and ensures the company remains sustainable," said Mike Gade, the Bruce Power Local vice-president of the Society of United Professionals who led the union’s bargaining efforts. "We wouldn’t have been able to reach this agreement without our members’ deep involvement in the bargaining process and confidence in the bargaining team."
Highlights of the agreement include:
- Four-year term beginning retroactively on January 1, 2019, and ending December 31, 2022, with wages increasing 8.5 per cent over that period.
- Bruce Power will hire more engineers into society-represented positions, and there will be a greater percentage of employees who can progress to higher levels of job responsibility.
- New provisions will make it easier for society-represented employees to gain experience through temporary assignment opportunities.
Voting and ratification information meetings were held Aug. 20-22. Voting was conducted by walk-in ballot.
Collective bargaining began in November 2018 and lasted 10 months. In June, society members gave their bargaining committee a strong strike mandate in the event that an agreement could not be reached.
The Society thanks Mike Gade and all of the members of the bargaining committee for all of their hard work. We also want to thank all of the members who gave their support, attended meetings and were otherwise actively involved in the bargaining process. These kinds of agreements are only possible because of the hard work and solidarity of every member in our locals.
