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AUPE News & Updates
Member Updates
Monday, August 4, 2003
High turnout in Bill 27 runoff votes indicates support for AUPE
EDMONTON – High percentages of eligible voters are returning their
ballots to the Alberta Labour Relations Board in Bill 27 runoff votes
to determine which union will represent General Support Services employees
in Alberta health regions.
The returned ballots have not yet been counted by the Labour Relations
Board, but AUPE is confident that the high return rate is a positive
sign of support for AUPE, said union President Dan MacLennan.
“It’s very positive that members are interested in the process
and are making sure that their votes get in to the Board,” MacLennan
said.
The Labour Board has released percentages of eligible General Support
Services employees who have returned their ballots in five of six health
regions where AUPE is on the ballot. The results are:
- Health Region 3 (Calgary Health Region, Calgary) – 3,040 of
4,860 eligible voters have returned their ballots, for a return rate
of 62.55 per cent.
- Health Region 4 (David Thompson Health Region, Red Deer –
1,167 of 1,897 eligible voters have returned their ballots, for a
return rate of 61.5 per cent.
- Health Region 5 (East Central Health Region, Camrose) – 236
of 336 eligible voters have returned their ballots, for a return rate
of 70.24 per cent.
- Health Region 6 (Capital Health Authority, Edmonton) – 2,631
of 4,602 eligible voters have returned their ballots, for a return
rate of 57.17 per cent.
- Health Region 8 (Peace Country Health Region, Peace River) –
598 of 919 eligible voters have returned their ballots, for a return
rate of 65.07 per cent.
Those vote results contrast with voter participation rates of 53 per
cent in the last Alberta provincial general election and about 35 per
cent in municipal elections in major Alberta cities.
The Labour Board has not provided the percentages of votes cast by General
Support Services employees in Health Region 7 (the Aspen Regional Health
Authority, based in Westlock), where the vote is continuing after a
delay.
The runoff votes were called in many health regions as a requirement
of the regulations to Bill 27, the Alberta law passed in March that
restructures bargaining units in the province’s nine health regions.
The bill required the creation of large functional bargaining units
in which all employees in one of four job categories in each region
will be represented by one union with one region-wide collective agreement.
Mail-in ballots were sent by the Labour Board to eligible employees
throughout the province.
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