The City of Yellowknife has extended an offer to the PSAC/UNW Local 345 union bargaining team to enter binding arbitration in an effort to end the on-going city workers strike.
The morning of February 23, the Union released their latest proposal to the public, which includes a 3.75% wage increase and signing bonuses of up to $1,000 for full-time employees.
“We feel our last proposal was fair and reasonable and we are hoping that City Council will provide the employer with a new mandate that will allow our bargaining teams to close the gap, and get us back to work.” The UNW/PSAC Bargaining Team said in a release.
Binding arbitration includes both parties who will provide information and their position with a third-party arbitrator who will make the final decision which is binding on both the employer and union members.
“If we had $15.8 million in cash that could be used with no strings attached, my job would be easy. Unfortunately, that’s not the reality.” Mayor Rebecca Alty said on social media.
“The $15 Million that the Union keeps referencing is actually grants that the City has received from the Federal and Territorial Government to do Capital Projects. With every grant, there are rules on how we can spend it,” Alty added.
According to Mayor Alty the majority of the money is Gas Tax Funding that the city has been saving over past years to pay for the new Aquatic Center. However, if the money was not used on an aquatic center, the money must still be spent according to federal rules which include projects such as recreation, water, sewer, or waste management.
