More than 300 Good Sam employees and supporters join info picket
EDMONTON – More than 300 AUPE members forcefully took their demands for a fair contract to the Good Samaritan Society at a noon-hour information picket Monday.
Chanting and waving placards, the Good Sam employees from 11 Alberta continuing-care centres and their supporters packed the sidewalk in front of the society’s headquarters at 8861 – 75th Street on the east side of Edmonton.
The Good Sam employees clearly demonstrated to the employer that they are united and able to act effectively, AUPE President Dan MacLennan told the cheering crowd, urging them to remain strong and united as bargaining with the employer continues.
AUPE represents auxiliary nursing care and general support employees of seven Edmonton-area Good Sam facilities, plus centres in Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Rocky Mountain House, Evansburg and Hinton. In all, approximately 700 employees come under seven separate collective agreements.
“The AUPE bargaining team and this employer are very far apart on a wide variety of issues in this round of bargaining,” AUPE Staff Negotiator Val Luvaha explained before the information picket started. “The employer’s very small wage proposal is completely unacceptable to our members and has served only to anger the employees at these worksites.”
AUPE expects to negotiate a single collective agreement for all 11 sites, Luvaha added, but the employer is resisting this very reasonable union position, which would be fair to employees and would simplify negotiations for both the union and the employer.
“The goal of this information picket was to show that our members are united and determined to win a collective agreement with fair pay increases and reasonable working conditions,” MacLennan said. “With the turnout and the volume of noise generated today, I don’t see how they could not have received that message loud and clear.”
AUPE members work at the following Good Sam facilities:
- Dr. Gerald Zetter Care Centre, Edmonton (Licensed Practical Nurses only)
- George Hennig Place, Edmonton
- Mill Woods Centre, Edmonton
- Mount Pleasant Care Centre, Edmonton
- Southgate Care Centre, Edmonton
- Wedman Village, Edmonton
- Spruce Grove Care Centre, Spruce Grove
- Stony Plain Care Centre, Stony Plain
- Clearwater Centre, Rocky Mountain House
- Mountainview Centre, Hinton
- Pembina Village, Evansburg.
The society operates continuing care facilities in Alberta and British Columbia.
Photo: More than 300 AUPE members and their supporters participated in an information picket Sept. 26 at the Edmonton headquarters of the Good Samaritan Society.