Following months of difficult negotiations and a strike lasting more than 10 weeks, the employees of the Société d’habitation et de développement de Montréal (SHDM) voted 67 per cent in favour of the tentative agreement reached between the employer and CUPE 301, representing outside workers in Montreal.

These employees who do property management support work had been without a collective agreement since December 2017.

Some of the gains include a total wage increase of 14.4 per cent over seven years and the employer’s recognition of sectors in job descriptions. As a result, the employer from now on will no longer be able to transfer employees from one place to another at their whim.

Travel premiums were improved and take into account the ever-increasing cost of gasoline. In addition, in the event of absences, the SHDM will use auxiliary employees rather than bring in private contractors.

“We never would have reached an acceptable agreement without the intense work of our bargaining team, the support of members and the backing our brothers and sisters of SHDM received from our union organization during the various demonstrations,” declared Luc Bisson, president of CUPE 301.