THE CRG STATEMENT ON THE TENTATIVE UNIFIED/CENTRAL

CONTRACT OFFER
The CRG Executive would like to thank CRG Members for their patience over
the last few weeks. A lot of movement has occurred. Your patience allowed us to
accurately review and thoroughly digest this information, as it was happening.
Accordingly, we now release our consensus-based conclusions.
As you are aware, OPSEU and the Government have both committed to
support a Corrections Only Collective Agreement (COR-Only C.A.). We applaud
this long-overdue bilateral commitment. Assuredly, it will correct bargaining
legislation currently used to violate our rights under Canadas Charter of Rights and
Freedoms. However, we must stress that the relocation of Correctional
workers from the Unified Bargaining Unit to a Corrections bargaining unit,
on its own, will not resolve the divisive Essential Service language in the
Crown Employees Collective Bargaining Act (CECBA). This language
prevents us from exercising our Charter right to strike in concert with
members of our bargaining unit. It also still denies us a meaningful
dispute resolution mechanism while classified as essential during what
has otherwise always been, ineffective CECBA-governed strikes.
This is significant in reviewing the recently announced tentative
Unified/Central contract offer in relation to how you should vote. Many members
have expressed concerns over how this proposal may impact on CRGs efforts to
amend CECBA legislation while trying to achieve a COR- Only C.A..
The CRG Executive, in consultation with our legal team, has reviewed this
contract offer.
We have concluded that this contract offer must be turned down by ALL
correctional employees.

VOTE NO TO THIS OFFER!

Our rationale: i) This offer does not remedy the need for an inclusive
Corrections Division, subject to a COR- Only C.A., and; ii) It keeps Corrections
Division subject to the existing improprieties and potential illegalities existing within
CECBA legislation. Thus, correctional workers in Unified and Corrections Bargaining
Units must send a strong message to both the Government and OPSEU!
Should the much larger non-correctional components within Unified
Bargaining Unit ratify this agreement, one question appears prevalent: How would
this affect our quest for a COR- Only C.A.? In response, CRGs legal Counsel
asserts that the construction of a new Collective Agreement for ALL
correctional members within a COR Only Division starts from a blank page.
This will be a brand new Collective Agreement. While, much of the Central
Agreement language might be transferred verbatim from the existing Collective
Agreement, ALL items are reopened for negotiation. EACH must be subject to vote,
once a new offer has been tentatively accepted.
A strong NO VOTE to this tentative offer will show the
fundamental differences between correctional workers and the rest of
OPSEUs OPS membership with whom we are presently entwined. The
stronger the message we send now will surely impact upon how seriously

THE CRG STATEMENT ON THE TENTATIVE UNIFIED/CENTRAL

CONTRACT OFFER
the government and OPSEU deal with us in the negotiation of a
Corrections Only environment.
In the interim, please stay tuned for more progressive developments from
CRG. Currently, we are developing a potential model, intended to demonstrate how
a COR- Only Collective Agreement might best be structured. We shall be sharing
this view with ALL shortly.

Stay strong and help shape the future of

Corrections!
CECBA REFORM GROUP EXECUTIVE
Kaufman, B. Roy, G. Stockfish)

(L. Augustin, C. Gareau, K.