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Working together for Saskatchewan |
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SGEU Strike > SGEU Home |
Are we now on strike? The strike notice given on Dec. 14 places the bargaining unit in a legal strike position. The Negotiating Committee continues to meet with the employer in an attempt to reach a collective agreement. The added pressure of strike notice often makes it more likely negotiations will conclude successfully. Depending on progress at the table, job actions remain a possibility while negotiations continue.
SGEU's bargaining position includes wage increases, action on grievances, steps to reduce workplace harassment, an employer-funded health plan, and pension improvements. Any union, including SGEU, does not pubicly release the full details of its proposal package. Members can receive more detailed information by attending union meetings, talking to their elected representatives and reading their SGEU mail.
The Provincial Strike Committee will determine the type of job action taken, depending on how negotiations progress. This may include work slowdowns, information pickets, rotating strikes, or other tactics to help move the contract negotiations forward. Even though the Nov. 30 strike vote supported strike action, it doesn’t mean every workplace will go out, nor does it mean that the same job action will take place everywhere. You should not take any job action unless it is authorized by the Strike Committee.
13,000 members of SGEU's Public Service/Government Employment (PS/GE) bargaining unit have served strike notice. This includes members who are directly employed by government. It does not include members who work for crown corporations, boards, agencies, commissions, authorities, health regions, educational institutions or community agencies. It does include members who work for government departments and executive government.
Each workplace participating in the strike rotation will have “Picket Captains.” You report to these Captains who get information from and report to the Local Strike Committee. The Local Strike Committee liaises with and reports to the Provincial Strike Committee.
You will receive strike pay if your workplace goes off the job. Strike pay is equivalent to your net pay for your regular hours (overtime is not included but differentials are). In order to collect strike pay, you are usually required to picket for four hours per day. You are expected to picket on the days you would normally be working, therefore you will only receive strike pay for the days you are on the picket line.
SGEU works hard to have strike pay paid within a week following your regular pay date.
You will be paid either by direct deposit or by cheque. We encourage members to complete the “Electronic Transfer” form to facilitate the direct deposit.
Members who are on layoff and receiving Employment Insurance will not be required to perform strike duty. Any strike activity could disqualify you from receiving benefits. Strike pay or stipend are considered earnings, therefore will affect a claimant’s EI benefit.
Strike pay is a loan from SGEU’s strike fund. This will be repaid by the entire membership, regardless of whether on not they took part in strike action. There will be a temporary levy on union dues payable within an 18 month period. This means that no matter who goes on strike, the entire membership helps pay back the strike pay to the union’s Defense Fund, less the $50 per day per person strike pay.
Only members who honour the strike and fulfill their strike duties receive strike pay. Be sure to register with your Picket Captain when reporting for strike duty.
If you work part-time, you will be asked to submit your last four (4) pay stubs. Your pay will be averaged from this period and payment issued to you.
Your Local Strike Committee will determine the amount of time and when you will be on the picket line. In the past, each member was expected to spend four (4) hours per day on the picket line for each day there was job action. Be sure to check in with your Picket Captain who will be keeping track of attendance. You will receive strike pay for each day you are actually in attendance on the picket line.
The employer will pay you for your vacation leave if your holiday was booked prior to the strike. You will not receive strike pay for the days you are on holidays and being paid by the employer. We encourage everyone with vacation leave booked to prepare their timesheets or timecards accordingly and submit them to payroll immediately. You will be asked to provide your vacation schedule to SGEU.
When you are on strike, you will not accumulate insured hours for Employment Insurance. This means that the time you are on strike will not count towards your required hours.
Members on WCB claims must contact the Workers’ Compensation Board regarding your specific claim and your participation in the strike.
Members who cannot picket due to health reasons or religious beliefs must contact their Local Strike Committee to be assigned equivalent work.
For the days you are actually on the picket line, you will not accumulate sick leave or vacation leave. However, after the strike is over, it may be possible to negotiate the benefits back for the strike period.
Although neither you nor the employer contributes to the pension plan for the days you are actually on the picket line, your plan membership continues and you do not lose any entitlement you have earned. Often the contribution for this period is negotiated as part of the back0to-work agreement or paid on your behalf by SGEU. If SGEU submits payment on your behalf, the contribution is considered to be “strike pay” and must be repaid as part of the loan form SGEU’s strike fund.
Your health benefits, group life insurance and long-term disability coverage will continue while on strike. Payment to cover LTD costs will be calculated in conjunction with the LTD Plan after the strike and such payments are treated the same as the pension plan.
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