Members of CUPE 882 in Prince Albert have halted the ratification vote and destroyed the ballots that were cast yesterday, following a tentative agreement was made with the City of Prince Albert.

The agreement was reached on Wednesday and included cost shared vision care for permanent employees and optional coverage for non-permanent employees to join the cost shared Employee Family Assistance Program. In addition, the pay bands would have been adjusted to bring the lowest paid workers above minimum wage.

In their reasoning for the decision, members stated that the City was making “a number of technological, structural, and organizational changes” upon their return to work. A release from CUPE 882 says Under the Saskatchewan Employment Act, employers must give written notice when proposing an organizational or technological change that will likely affect the terms, conditions, and tenure of employment of a significant number of employees. The union adds that none of the proposed changes had been disclosed to the union prior to the September 29th negotiations. Due to what they say was a last-minute disclosure, they were forced to halt the ratification vote.

A release from the City argues that there was a single proposed change, and that was the creation of a call centre. A call centre was implemented during the strike to answer phones, and the City says it proved to be very effective at improving customer service.

CUPE 882 is calling on the employer to return to the bargaining table as soon as possible.

The union began job action on August 10, with a full withdrawal of services starting on September 11. The full withdrawal of services has impacted service levels at City Hall, EA Rawlinson Centre for the Arts, Frank Dunn Pool, Alfred Jenkins Field House, and the Art Hauser Centre.