Telus employees are practice picketing across Canada, including in the St. Albert region, following a 96 per cent strike mandate in the fall.
Donna Hokiro, United Steelworkers union Local 1944 President, spoke with the Gazette on behalf of St. Albert and area Telus employees and said employees are fighting for wage increases and holidays.
The company’s collective agreement expired on Dec. 31 of 2021 and negotiations with the union extended through all of 2022 and they are entering their 17 th month of bargaining. The union held a strike mandate vote for the first time in 17 years in October of 2022, with results of 96-97% in favour of holding a strike.
Practice pickets were held across over the past few weekends with union members from Edmonton, Victoria, Terrace, Sunshine Coast, Red Deer, Penticton, Okotoks, Nanaimo, Lethbridge, Courtenay, Campbell River, and Barrie standing together in solidarity to “show Telus that they need to come back to the bargaining table.” The practice pickets are expected to continue until negotiations can continue.
Hokiro said workers do not want to dispute or withhold services, but will continue to practice picketing across the country, “to show them what kind of noise we can make.”
Hokiro said after just one offer, Telus walked away from the table, halting negotiations. “[They said] this is the offer; your members will take it. So, they have arrogance beyond measure.”
“This is how they keep millions and millions of dollars in their pockets at the expense of apparently devalued employees,” Hokiro said. “We would like retroactivity for the year where they made more money than ever.”
In 2021, Telus produced $17.26 billion in revenue— the highest ever revenue for the company. In the second and third quarter of 2022, workers produced record revenues of $4.4 billion and $4.7 billion respectively.
While workers faced many personal pressures alongside the rest of the world during the COVID pandemic, including being made to work from home, some Telus employees faced unexpected workplace stresses. Technicians were not only working in other people’s homes, but were servicing hospitals and continuing care facilities.
“You don't know if you're walking into a dangerous situation with respect to the virus, nobody knew anything about it [at that time].”
Hokiro also noted that many of the company’s call centre jobs have been outsources overseas, leaving Canadians without work.
While Telus’ executive leadership team has put out emails thanking workers for their hard work and contributions to the company’s success throughout the pandemic, the union is arguing Telus should show its appreciation for the employees by offering a fair wage and protecting their jobs. “The leadership team says 'thank you, couldn't have done it without you,' but continue to make money themselves as executives,” Hokiro argued.
Telus has also profited as they continue to petition the federal government to raise rates for internet, phone, and home services, Hokiro said.
“If there are billions in profits, there’s room for a contract with fair wages and benefits,” Hokiro argued.
The union’s previous agreement with Telus included a COLA, or cost of living allowance. However, it was paid out last year at just 0.67 per cent. Hokiro said that despite the small amount of money that was paid out, the cost of living allowance is now something Telus wants to do away with.
The union is also fighting for workers to keep their allotted holiday time off. The company’s collective agreement included Easter Monday as a day off previously, however Hokiro explained that since National Truth and Reconciliation Day has been recognized as a day for reflection, the company has said they will take away the Easter holiday, as recognizing TRC would mean employees will hit their limit for time off.
The union has bargained with telecommunications companies before, however Hokiro said Telus’ refusal to negotiate is unique, as past negotiations with companies such as Shaw have “end[ed] up in conciliation.”
The union will continue to practice picket until Telus agrees to negotiate.
Representatives from Telus declined to be interviewed and did not return additional request for comment.
The Local 1944 union currently supports 6,800 Telus workers across Canada.
