Article content
VANCOUVER — Around 300 former Shaw technicians absorbed by Rogers Communications Inc. during the companies’ merger have overwhelmingly voted to strike amid concerns over job security following recent layoffs and voluntary departures.
The union representing the workers, who are based in Vancouver, Richmond, Surrey and Langley, says those job losses call into question Rogers’ commitment to create 3,000 new jobs in Western Canada over five years — a federally mandated condition of the $26-billion takeover.
Article content
In July, Rogers began offering voluntary departure packages and confirmed an unspecified number of employees were laid off as it integrated with Shaw and worked to eliminate duplication.
Jayson Little, a spokesperson for United Steelworkers union Local 1944, says Rogers is seeking to erode contractual language that prevents staff technicians’ work from being performed by contractors at homes and businesses. Rogers did not immediately provide comment.
The union says its members will be in position to walk off the job in late October if the impasse hasn’t been solved after receiving a 99.6 per cent strike mandate in last Friday’s vote.
The two sides have been at the bargaining table since February as the union’s members work under the terms of their previous collective agreement that expired on March 23.
Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add VancouverSun.com and TheProvince.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.
You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber: For just $14 a month, you can get unlimited, ad-lite get unlimited, ad-lite access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.
Share this article in your social network
Discussion about this post