Provincial Housing Agency Refuses to Bargain

As you are aware the province has applied to the Labour Board to consolidate all current staff of the new Provincial Housing Agency into one bargaining unit. The impacted unions, including the NSGEU, have pushed back on this request and a hearing has been scheduled for October.

In the meantime, the law does permit bargaining to take place if all parties agree. The union contacted the employer to seek agreement and schedule bargaining dates. Yesterday, the employer responded that they would not take part in any bargaining before the hearing in October.

Part of the union’s argument against the current application to the Labour Board is that the province has not demonstrated that the current bargaining model, with each staff remaining with their current union representation, doesn’t work. This is a signal that the employer and province do not want to risk bargaining and find that it can be successful.

The union will continue to advocate on your behalf and do everything possible to being work on your new collective agreement. You deserve nothing less.