City of Melville workers vote overwhelmingly in favour of job action

Workers at the City of Melville have voted in favour of job action.

According to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents 32 employees with the city, the overwhelming majority voted in favour. The city has seen 32 full-time staff members resign since 2021, the union said, with 18 of the resignations coming in 2023 and nine more last year.

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“This level of turnover is unsustainable for an employer that provides such a vast and varied range of services,” Dylan Breland, a CUPE staff representative in Melville, said in a statement.

“Other employers in this region are offering anywhere from two to five dollars more per hour for equal or lesser qualifications, abilities, and skills.”

According to CUPE, the most recent collective agreement saw city employees receive a five per cent wage increase over four years. The union said that increase was far outstripped by inflation over the same period. That agreement expired at the end of 2023, and bargaining has been ongoing since March of 2024.

“We should be coming together and doing our best to get a deal that works for everyone, but the city opened mediation by offering a worse deal,” Kevin Schick, president of CUPE 456, said in a statement.

“We are hopeful that a deal can be reached at the bargaining table but our members have sent a strong message: We deserve a fair deal, and we are willing to stand together to fight for one.”

The union is not currently in a legal strike position, CUPE noted, and additional bargaining with a mediator is expected to begin on February 26.