(Photo: CUPE NB news conference)
It appears the CUPE New Brunswick strike is no further ahead after a meeting between the Premier and union leaders.
In the legislature earlier today, Premier Blaine Higgs told the members it was a long day on Thursday, but they had a path forward, “We had a meeting last night. There was an agreement that the team accepted to take back to their bargaining team and recommend acceptance. That is all I will share in my session right now.”
But CUPE NB held a news conference on the steps of the Legislature, with Union President Stephen Drost stating that’s just not true, “He’s running around saying when we left that building last night, that we had a deal that we were bringing back to you. That was never ever said by our delegation that met with him. I am not dishonest, I have never been and for him to insinuate that is not a way to resolve negotiations. The word that I gave him is, that I’m not sure that they are going to accept this, but we will take it back to the team and we will let the centralized bargaining team decide. They had a look at his offer and they proposed a counter, which they have in writing as of 4:03am this morning, and we’re still waiting to hear back from the Premier.”
A large crowd of CUPE NB picketers, booed and heckled the Premier, as Drost invited him to come out of the Legislature to settle this.
“Mr. Drost invited me over here just a few minutes ago. I thought I should come. If we wanted to have a good discussion, then I’d like to do that because we need to have a solution here,” Higgs said.
Drost says they have negotiated around the clock, whatever it takes to get this settled, “The workers want fair treatment and they are prepared to go back to work, but they are not going to have certain things forced upon them. It just doesn’t work that way. It’s no more Higgs way or the highway. It has to be fair and reasonable negotiations, both sides.”
Seven of CUPE NB ten locals walked off the job on October 29th, and the remainder in the days following. More than 20, 000 union workers workers are affected.
The Higgs government has scheduled a news conference this afternoon at 2:45 to give a a labour relations update. Health Minister Dorothy Shephard and Attorney General Ted Flemming are also scheduled to speak.
(Photo: CUPE NB news conference)
