REGINA, SK - The Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union (SGEU) is responding with concern and disappointment to Tuesday’s announcement that Information Services Corporation (ISC) is being sold to a private affiliate of Plenary Americas for $1.2 billion.

Every piece of farmland, every home and every business registration in Saskatchewan relies on ISC. It is essential public infrastructure. By handing control of these vital registries over to an international investment firm, this government has once again demonstrated that it is more interested in listening to industry lobbyists than the workers who deliver public services every day.

Despite government claims, shifting control deeper into private hands opens the door to massive fee hikes for everyday citizens and local businesses. When investor profit precedes public good, costs inevitably rise.

We don’t have to guess what happens next; we have seen this playbook before. Look at the privatization of land registries in other provinces:

The provincial government points to “Golden Share” protections, board seats and a head office remaining in Regina. Let us be perfectly clear: assurances of a corporate headquarters location are not the same as enforceable protections for unionized workers.

A change to private-equity style ownership brings immense pressure to cut costs, which frequently results in tighter staffing, automation without adequate worker protections, contracting out and ongoing pressure on labour costs. Keeping jobs “in Saskatchewan” does not stop a corporation from slowly dismantling the quality of those jobs.

“For SGEU, this is about drawing a line,” said SGEU president Tracey Sauer. “We believe that public utilities should answer to the public, not to wealthy investors who view our vital registries as a cash cow and our workforce as an expense to be cut.”

SGEU is keeping a very close eye on this situation. We are demanding that any transition under this new ownership be matched by binding, legally enforceable protections for our members, including:

• Strict commitments on maintaining safe staffing levels.
• Full respect for collective bargaining rights and existing agreements.
• Ironclad limits on contracting out and job restructuring.
• Meaningful safeguards and training surrounding technological changes.

We stand with our members at ISC. We will continue to fight to protect your jobs, your working conditions, and the public services that belong to the people of Saskatchewan.

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For more information, please contact:

SGEU Communications
Email: comm@sgeu.org

About SGEU

The Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union has been working together for Saskatchewan since 1913. Today, SGEU represents 20,000 members in five sectors across Saskatchewan.