Dear colleagues,
Further to our earlier communication this morning, the Employer has just acknowledged receipt of the AASUA’s revised offer of late yesterday to settle the next collective agreement. However, they have not agreed to a communications embargo while we recommence negotiations at this sensitive stage. While we were hoping to receive a revised offer today, the Employer has indicated that they cannot get a response to the Association until next week.
As you are likely aware, a million things can happen over the course of negotiations in just a few hours, and next week could end with many different possible outcomes depending on the Employer’s next move. While we are cautiously optimistic for what might occur, and their new offer does invest more in our benefits plan, there remains some vulnerabilities in their approach. Further, your bargaining team feels that the Employer’s offer doesn’t yet address the membership’s priorities in relation to additional steps for members whose salaries long ago hit the maximum cap, restore the ASRP, or provide job security for our Term ATS members. We anticipate that they imminently may try to convince you otherwise. If that occurs, we know that you will thoughtfully consider their comments, and we will respond — as we always have — with a fair and in-depth analysis of both parties’ latest offers.
Now is not the time to slow our collective mobilizing activities as we ready for a strike vote. Neither is it the time to stop communicating to our membership in a clear and transparent manner, so you really know what is “on the table” as presented by both sides. To that end, we’re also inviting you back to the discourse, and have rescheduled our bargaining townhall for two times next week: Thursday, October 2, at 12:30 PM and Friday, October 3, at 10 AM.
For those of you that will be automatically registered next week because you were registered for today’s townhall, you will be registered in Friday’s session and receive a confirmation email. If you would instead like to attend on Thursday, there is no need to register again; you can use the meeting information we send you for Friday Oct. 3 to access the Thursday session. For members who have not signed up, the invite to sign up to either town hall will go out Monday. We invite all of you to come to hear about the parties’ latest respective proposals, to ask questions, and to provide feedback to your bargaining team.
We hope that we will soon have good news to bring to you. But until then, we must all continue to organize until we know for certain that your support of our bargaining team and your mobilizing efforts have led to a fair outcome for our membership. Now is not the time to let up on the gas pedal!
We look forward to providing the membership with a comprehensive update next week at the townhalls, if not before.
In solidarity,
Gordon Swaters
AASUA President