National Executive Board Meeting
September 24-25, 2014
Resolution of CUPE’s National Executive Board
Re: Support for Striking Local 608 Members at the United Church’s Naramata Centre in British Columbia
CUPE NATIONAL WILL:
- Encourage Provincial Divisions, Local Unions and Council of Unions to write to the United Church of Canada Moderator and the British Columbia Conference of the United Church calling on the United Church to intervene in the dispute at their Naramata Centre in the interests of finding a just resolution.
- Encourage CUPE members who are also members of the United Church to discuss this labour dispute in their congregation.
BECAUSE:
- To date the United Church has taken a hands off approach to this strike at their Naramata Centre.
- The United Church has adopted policies in support of free collective bargaining, in support of encouraging all United Church bodies to ensure fair labour practices especially in relation to wages and working conditions and in support of placing the need for employment ahead of the movement of capital.
- Naramata has proposed numerous concessions at the bargaining table.
- Naramata has proposed contracting out members’ work that would result in over one-half of CUPE members losing their jobs at the Centre.
- Naramata was found to be in violation of anti-scab legislation by the British Columbia Labour Relations Board.
- The proposals tabled in bargaining and the plan to contract out work are not necessary to sustain the Centre and are contrary to adopted United Church policy.
- Since 1976, and up until this dispute, CUPE and the Naramata Centre have had an extremely positive relationship.
- Members have been on strike since May 15 with no talks scheduled and no end in sight.
