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The employees at Pleasantview Lodge in High Prairie have voted 100 per cent to reject the latest offer from management. The Lodge employees are determined to achieve a fair contract and will take job action if necessary.

This employer is refusing to bargain fairly. Our members were shocked to learn that their employer is refusing the most simple and straight forward contract terms such as bi-weekly pay and the establishment of a labour-management committee, said Doug Luellman, CUPE national representative.

The employers offer included eliminating lunch breaks, shift premiums and other benefits currently held by the employees.

The 14 employees are members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 838 and include housekeepers, cooks, the activity co-ordinator and maintenance staff. The CUPE members have been bargaining for five months, including 20 hours of mediation assistance. They are seeking a one-dollar per hour wage increase.

These people make sure the seniors at Pleasantview Lodge have a safe, clean home with wholesome, nutritious food. And they want fair pay and recognition for the important work that they do. They perform a very valuable service in our community and it is time their employer treated them with fairness, said Luellman.

A provincial mediator will not recommend a settlement because the final position of each side is so far apart. Under the terms of the Alberta Labour Code, the members of Local 838 are now in a fourteen-day cooling off period, after which they can serve notice to strike.

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CUPE is Canada’s largest union with over half a million women and men who provide public services. In Alberta, CUPEs 31,000 members work in health care, municipalities, schools, colleges, universities, libraries, emergency medical services, social services and casinos. Visit our CUPE website for more information cupealberta.ca

For further information:
Doug Luellman CUPE National Representative
(780) 402-9113 (cellular)
Pam Beattie CUPE Communications
(780) 288-1230 (cellular)