NEU / PSAC North Members working with the Qulliq Energy Corporation across Nunavut: 

 

Your union bargaining team and QEC resumed negotiations in Iqaluit from April 14-16. Though travel conditions and weather affected the parties’ ability to get together quickly, we managed to make the best of it and did have meaningful exchanges with the employer.

 

However, we wish to note to the membership that we didn’t always like what we heard at the table and the Employer took lengthy delays to come back to us with responses, only to offer us very little in return of such delays. This made negotiation feel really one-sided at times.

 

Perhaps the other party was more interested in running out the clock than really getting into a fair and good deal that keeps unionized QEC workers protected and ahead on their terms and conditions of employment and deals with addressing ongoing recruitment/retention issues. 

 

To say your union made significant movement towards getting a deal this week, would be an understatement. 

 

That being said, we believe the parties can use a pause and we are working on reconvening negotiations in mid-May where we hoped to reach a fair and meaninful deal.

 

In solidarity,

Paul Kowmageak, Bargaining team member

Lorne Whalen, Bargaining team member

Darren Penney, Bargaining team member

Maxime Thibault-Gingras, PSAC National Negotiator

Said Apali, PSAC Research Officer