Edmonton’s administrative employees could go on strike in January as union rejects latest city offer

The union representing Edmonton’s administrative employees and 911 operators could be striking in mid-January — as they have rejected the latest offer from the city. It comes as 2024 could be the year of collective bargaining.

“Our members are the IT people, we are the police 911 comms operators, we are the payroll people, we are the people who process developments for permits,” explained Lanny Chudyk, president of the CSU 52.

The president of Edmonton’s civil service union told media Friday at city hall that his members are struggling with the high cost of living. The union and the city are at the negotiating table for a new three-year collective agreement, the latest offer from the city rejected by the union.

“The numbers the city threw on the table are so low — zero, one, and two — that I wouldn’t take it to my membership,” said Chudyk.

Edmonton’s mayor says he hopes city administration and the Civil Service Union can reach a deal.

“We want to make sure that our employees are being treated fairly, that we value the work that they provide to the city. As for negotiations currently, that’s done between city administration and the union and we would encourage both parties to stay at the table,” said Mayor Amarjeet Sohi.

The collective agreement is not the only one making headlines. Earlier this week, disabled-accessible transit drivers reached a new deal with the City of Edmonton that sees drivers get a pay increase of approximately 1.5 per cent over two years.  

But as one deal is reached, another is in the air. The province will have to deal with teachers’ contracts.

Edmonton Public School teachers will vote on whether or not to strike early in the new year.

Organized labour advocates in Alberta say if it seems like there’s a lot of collective bargaining going on, you’re not imagining things. More than half of the province’s  485,000 employees covered by a collective agreement will have theirs expire in 2024.

“Basically everyone in health care. It includes basically everyone in K-12 education, many people working for municipalities including the City of Edmonton. Many people working in post-secondary education,” explained Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Federation of Labour.

McGowan added negotiations come at a tough time, with many public sector union employees going without raises during the pandemic, as well as rising costs of living.

“There’s an expectation that there’s going to be some recognition of all that hard work and service and sacrifice at the bargaining table, and this is also coming at the same time that the provincial government is recording a $5.5 billion budget surplus. So it’s going to be hard for public sector employers to claim poverty.”