Manitoba’s NDP government had replaced most of the board members of Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) two days after it was sworn in office, CBC has reported.
Matt Wiebe, the justice minister and the minister in charge of MPI, has said the top priority of the new board is to end the workers’ strike that started in late August.
“It's absolutely vital to be perfectly clear with the workers of MPI and with all working people across Manitoba that … as a new government, we're setting a new tone and we're setting, in this case, a new mandate for the board of MPI,” said Wiebe in a news conference last Friday.
Last month, MPI gave striking workers a “final offer” and aimed to enter a binding arbitration with them. A binding arbitration is a legally binding and enforceable decision that parties can apply for should a strike or lockout go on for 60 days.
Wiebe has reportedly directed the board to not immediately seek binding arbitration. Instead, he has directed them to work with the union in establishing new dates for bargaining.
Kyle Ross, the president of the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union, called the development a positive turn for workers who had been striking for weeks. 1,700 MPI workers represented by the MGEU are involved in the strike action.
“I think there's a bit of a sigh of relief for our members where they can say, 'we're going to get treated fairly now and we can get a fair deal,’” said Ross.
While wages are the centre of the labour dispute, the mandate latter Wiebe issued to the MPI outlining the new board’s priorities didn’t include compensation for workers or other details about the collective bargaining agreement.
He said negotiations will be up to the new board. A specific timeline for negotiation has yet to be announced.
“We have asked the board to move quickly to get to work to begin the negotiations, or reset the relationship and start negotiating, but we're not being prescriptive on a timeline,” said Wiebe.
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