Friday, March 11, 2022

Cedarvale Lodge Employees Secure Wage Increases and Other Gains

Keswick, ON—Employees of Cedarvale Lodge Retirement and Care Community in Keswick voted 93 percent in favour of ratifying a collective agreement providing them with wage increases and other gains.

The employees are represented by Healthcare and Service Workers Union, CLAC Local 304. The union has represented them since 1995.

The new three-year contract provides employees with annual 1.5 percent wage increases over the term. In addition, special wage adjustments were made for personal support workers and dietary and laundry aides. All employees will also benefit from improved vision care and paramedical coverage, a 45-cents-per-hour weekend premium, the introduction of a new 20-cents-per-hour night-shift premium, and reimbursement for nonoccupational functional abilities forms.

“We were able to negotiate some unique provisions during this round of bargaining with our employer, at a time when it seems that creativity is no longer part of negotiations,” says Brenda Crowder, a member of the union bargaining committee and a union steward at the home. “We hope that these contract gains will help retain staff during a time when so many are leaving healthcare.”

“Our bargaining committee worked diligently during an extraordinarily difficult time in healthcare,” adds Michael Glockner, CLAC representative. “Our members working at Cedarvale deserve every last cent of what was negotiated, and the high percentage of those voting in favour demonstrates their overwhelming support for the contract.”

Cedarvale Lodge Employees Secure Wage Increases and Other Gains

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