Striking Crown workers march through downtown Regina

Roughly 1,000 Unifor members marched through downtown Regina on Friday, one week into the strike at seven Crown corporations.

The crowd gathered in Victoria Park, wearing bright reflective vests, waving red Unifor flags and listening to a rally speech by union leaders.

“Premier (Scott) Moe did not expect this when he picked a fight with our members,” said Chris MacDonald, assistant to Unifor’s national president.

The crowd marched to the headquarters of three major Crowns — SaskPower, SaskEnergy and SaskTel — stopping in front of each building for a brief chant.

Amy Huber, a customer service rep at SaskEnergy, was holding a sign that read, “It takes a real Moeron to force 7 Crowns to strike.”

“I just want to get back to work. I’m hoping that Moe can drop the wage freeze and give us a fair deal,” said Huber.

The government’s offer is a five-year deal with no salary increases in the first two years, a one-per-cent increase in Year 3 and two-per-cent increases in each of the final two years.

Unifor is demanding what it calls a “fair deal,” one that puts the wage increase in line with the 2.3-per-cent increase the premier and MLAs received in 2019.

Huber is also striking for job security, saying too many jobs are being outsourced to other provinces. She said it’s tough to tell how long this strike will last but said morale is good as the mercury drops.

“I bought some ski pants and I’m keeping warm, fighting the good fight,” said Huber.

Lyle Ashe works at SaskTel and said he’s cautiously optimistic on reaching a deal. But he added two years of zeroes don’t cut it.

“We’re not asking for the world, just something to keep up with the cost of living,” he said.

“I want to go back to work. It’s just a matter of how long can you keep going year after year without anything decent coming your way?”

Alan Lamers, a technical analyst with SaskTel, said he didn’t go on strike for the wage increase. He said he’s striking for the workers who aren’t getting overtime or positions that are being turned into part-time jobs.

“I’m here to save SaskTel,” Lamers said. “I think SaskTel is being torn to shreds by the government and the managerial staff.”

Lamers saw the labour dispute coming and planned ahead, putting aside some money to get through the strike.

“I think we’ve just begun. I think this might be a long haul,” said Lamers.

Seven bargaining units went on strike Oct. 4. On Thursday afternoon, union members employed by the Water Security Agency reached a tentative deal with the Crown agency.