Over the last 13 years, I've seen local presidents and locals throw their hands up
in the air on the National Executive Board's "Tentative Agreements". Locals appeared like they were being excluded from negotiations and agreements were being made without consultation of local executives. This has been going on for a long time and many National Conventions have come and gone without this problem being addressed.
There seems to be two unions. One at the national level going one way and one at the local level going another. This is discord. This is lack of unity. This is weakness.
These directional differences have been going on a long time. You can't have two different unions negotiating with Canada Post. Surely, at National Conventions, ways could have been suggested to clear up local discord before anything becomes a "tentative deal".
We all know in any negotiating round, the union can only make so many gains before the big hammer of Government gets activated.
Usually negotiations go down to the eleventh hour before a deal is reached.
However, the fact still remains that the negotiating committee decides if more can be achieved from further negotiating and/or a strike.
If the local unions are in communication with the NEB, they can see progress or not. However, I can't see how they're participating or how local CUPW members are participating. Is there anyway to give feedback or do a poll on an issue?? No, it doesn't happen in CUPW.
There's no way the locals can fire the present negotiating committee and get another one.
I don't remember any tentative agreement being turned down.
If the National President tells CUPW members that's all they can get from Canada Post, how can we not believe her? From many years of experience, CPC doesn't negotiated further at a certain point and waits until a government arbitrator decides what's in the new contract and what isn't.
Again, this is a failure to solve these problems in the CUPW constitution and the negotiation process. The NEB has complete control to accept "tentative agreements" without the approval of a majority of locals.
Next, there's the divided vote from the membership, some agreeing with some locals that we can get more out of further negotiations and/or a strike and some agreeing with the NEB that we can't.
If CUPW is now fighting amongst itself about what can be achieved and what can't,
it's in a weakened state and I wouldn't send conflicted negotiators back to the negotiating table.
We can't really get good deals with CPC or Government arbitration if we're battling with each other. Conflicts must be resolved before a tentative agreement is reached.
I've waited 13 years for the NEB and locals to resolve these negotiating/solidarity problems. Nothing has changed. The struggle continues between CUPW members.
Posted by qualteam
at 12:12 PM EST
Updated: Tuesday, 27 February 2007 12:16 PM EST
St Johns