City of Calgary workers vote in favor of strike

The union representing workers in the City of Calgary says a majority of its members voted in favor of going on strike to meet contract demands.

Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 38 president D'Arcy Lanovaz said 89 percent of members who voted supported the strike mandate.

He said 4,148 people participated in the general election, which is about 75 percent of the membership.

Although CUPE is required to give 72 hours of strike notice, Lanovaz said the union has no intention of doing so yet as contract negotiations with the city and a mediator resumed Tuesday morning.

He said flexibility in pay and work-from-home policies are the main sticking points.

In a statement, the city acknowledged the union's strike mandate.

“We are satisfied with the outcome of the strike, but discussions continue,” said the press secretary.

“We hope to be able to reach a fair and reasonable collective agreement in future negotiations.”

According to Lanovaz, any potential labor action can take several forms, from work to a rule, from a shift work action to a full strike.

“(The employer) needs to know that their offer is very low, completely out of line with members' expectations,” Lanovaz said.

“So it's part of the process. If the employer is going to take a hard line, then you know, we have to consider some sort of escalation at that point.