Ratification votes were held this week for Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and Union of National Defence Employees (UNDE) members in Bagotville, Kingston, Montreal–St-Jean, Ottawa, Petawawa, and Valcartier after a settlement was reached through mediation with Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services (CFMWS).After almost 100 days on the picket lines, nearly 300 civilian military workers in Kingston, Ottawa, and Petawawa will return to work after voting 71% in favour during ratification votes. The strike will end immediately at military bases in Kingston, Ottawa, and Petawawa and members will return to work within the next five days.The settlement includes wage increases totalling 13.75% over the three-year agreement ending in 2025, averaging 4.6% per year. It also includes a commitment to consult with the union on the implementation of a single national job classification for all jobs, with the goal of creating a national wage grid to close wage gaps between military bases across the country.“This settlement delivers important gains for our members after taking strike action for more than three months in the face of employer apathy, police intimidation, picket line violence and the use of scab labour,” said Chris Aylward, PSAC national president.“That’s why our bargaining teams brought this offer to a vote, because ultimately bargaining is led by our members and they deserved the opportunity to cast their ballot.”Workers in Bagotville, Montreal–St-Jean, and Valcartier will remain on strike after 80% of ballots cast rejected the settlement.“We’re listening to the concerns of NPF members who voted against the settlement and will continue to support them as strike action continues,” said Aylward.Nearly 200 members working on bases in Bagotville, Montreal–St-Jean, and Valcartier voted against the settlement and will remain on strike.The key sticking points in this round of negotiations that led to strike action are the significant wage gap between NPF members and the core public service and the wage disparity between military bases in Canada.PSAC said it will continue to pressure decision-makers to put in place the necessary legislative and regulatory changes to move the work NPF members do into the core public service and address longstanding wage disparity for workers.“Our members who voted against the contract are also the lowest paid NPF workers despite performing the exact same duties as their colleagues in other provinces and the core public service,” said June Winger, UNDE national president. “These members are demanding pay equity, and UNDE will continue supporting them to achieve that.”PSAC represents nearly 230,000 workers across Canada. UNDE is a component union of PSAC representing over 18,000 public and private sector workers at the Department of National Defence — including nearly 500 striking CFMWS workers.
