The Town of Oliver is claiming a vote in favour of a strike by municipal employees on Wednesday will hold farmers "hostage."
"At this point, I can't say anything more than it is absolutely shocking and we will be responding to it in as short order as we can," said Rachel Champagne, CUPE national representative for Oliver, adding they plan on responding in a press release sometime Friday afternoon.
Following a breakdown in mediated negotiations to renew the collective agreement, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 608 voted on strike action on Wednesday, the collective agreement expired on Dec. 31, 2010. The union has yet to formally announce when, or if, strike action will take place.
The Town of Oliver said as part of a strategy to force demands on the local community, CUPE has refused to acknowledge the importance of Oliver's agricultural irrigation water supply as an essential service.
"By fighting an essential service designation by the Labour Relations Board for agricultural water supply, Oliver's municipal employees are attempting to hold local farmers hostage to satisfy their wage demands," said Oliver Mayor Ron Hovanes. "This is a major concern for council as the town is responsible for providing water to the entire community, including the farming sector. We will continue to exercise all avenues available to pursue a favourable decision by the LRB, and failing that, to keep water flowing using management staff."
Hovanes said an application will be filed by Oliver to the Labour Relations Board asking for agricultural water to be deemed an essential service. The mayor said it could take up to two weeks to get that decision.
The Town of Oliver said the previous council initially based their offer on the City of Penticton settlement, a four-year contract that has no increase in the first year, followed by three years of one per cent increases. The newly elected Oliver council then upgraded this offer during mediation to a four-year contract with no increase in the first year, followed by three years of 1.5 per cent increases. Also included was a $400 signing bonus in the first year. The Town of Oliver said increased vacation entitlements were also added to the package but were subsequently replaced with annual allowance for safety footwear at the union's request.
"Council believes the town's offer is more than fair under the current economic circumstances in Oliver. We did not ask for wage concessions for any positions, as was the case in Penticton," said Hovanes. "Our settlement is significantly more generous than the Penticton settlement and includes a new provision for safety footwear cost reimbursement, which has been sought by this bargaining unit several times in the past."
The town stated in a press release on Friday that over the term of the previous contract, economies have retracted, including Oliver's. They pointed to the closure of Weyerhaeuser sawmill in Okanagan Falls in 2007, putting 224 employees out of work, many from Oliver. In 2008, General Coach closed their Oliver plant, eliminating 86 more people, and the Okanagan Tree Fruit Cooperative in Oliver entered into a five-year contract in 2010 that imposed significant wage cuts in the first year and provided no increases for the two years following. The town said even provincial employees in Oliver and beyond are facing the prospect of no wage increases at this time.
More on this story to follow.