Grande Prairie workers are among more than 155,000 federal public servants on strike nationwide. The workers went on strike on Wednesday, April 19th after the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the federal government failed to reach an agreement.
Local union president Joshua Calkins says the union has been trying to negotiate with the government, as many employees have been without a contract for a couple of years.
“We are making noise out there trying to get some support. We deserve fair wages, better contracts, anti-racism in the workplace, and ensuring that shift workers get better premiums.”
A wage increase has been at the top of their negotiation, with workers also pushing for work-from-home options and contract work.
Calkins adds all they want is for the government to get back to the table and negotiate with them.
“It’s been about two years since the last agreement expired, so we’ve been trying to get that one updated and get a new one going. We want to be able to pay bills and afford food we are essentially the working poor, you know, living cheque to cheque.”
The strike will impact federal services including passport applications, immigration, and income tax refunds.