New Democratic Party of Canada lays off all Quebec employees
Background
COPE Local 225, based in Ottawa, is the union for most employees working at the National Office of the Federal NDP in Ottawa.
In 2006, COPE Local 225 also provided a home in the house of labour for three employees of the NDP-Quebec Section working in Montreal. While not outright opposing the certification of this bargaining unit, the NDP-Quebec Section did not make the certification process easy.
In the latter part of 2006, the Local experienced difficulty negotiating the first collective agreement, which negotiations were finally settled after threat of strike, and possible corollary boycott of the Federal NDP's National Convention in Quebec, by organized labour.
Since that time, the individual who first approached the Local with the employees' request to be organized, now both the unit Shop Steward and a member of the Local Executive, has twice been obliged to file complaints to the Quebec Labour Board.
Recent events
On June 27, 2008, the Federal Secretary of the Federal NDP, Eric Hebert-Daly, issued a letter to the President of the NDP-Quebec Section advising that the Federal NDP would not renew a service contract which provided funding to the NDP-Quebec Section.
That same day, the Director General of the NDP-Quebec Section and employee of the Federal NDP, Rebecca Blaikie, sent an e-mail to the three local members advising that they were to be laid off July 26th and that all of their rights and entitlements under the collective agreement (overtime, vacation pay, etc.) would be honored.
On July 8, 2008, the Local and the affected members received a communiqué from Micheline Anne Montreuil, Associate President of the NDP-Quebec Section, withdrawing the lay-off notice of June 27th, replacing the lay-off notice with a new notice of lay-off effective August 5, 2008 and advising that overtime pay, vacation pay and other benefits guaranteed in the earlier lay-off notice could not be guaranteed.
On July 18th, the Local filed an application to the Quebec Labour Board under articles 39, 45, 46 et 118 (3) of the Quebec Labour code.
To view the application and for more details, please visit:
http://www.cope225sepb.ca/cope225-ndpquebecsection.html
or in French at:
http://www.cope225sepb.ca/cope225-ndpquebecsectionfrench.html
In solidarity,
Robin Kers President COPE Local 225