Shoreworkers’ Collective Agreements, also called Shoreworker Contracts, are the documents that guarantee plant workers their wages, benefits, working conditions, and their rights.
At present, each company has its own Collective Agreement. The CFC Contract covers the Home Plant, Oceanside and Seal Cove Plants, as well as the Prince Rupert Reduction Plant. Omega is covered by its own UFAWU-Unifor Collective Agreement.
Grievances
One of the most important parts of the contract is the grievance procedure. This allows the union to enforce the contract. If the company does not follow the Collective Agreement, then the UFAWU-Unifor will take your complaint up, possibly even to arbitration or to the Labour Relations Board.
Seniority
Seniority is the basis for call-out. Instead of bringing a box of chocolates to the boss, unions have established seniority as the order for a call to work. Each plant or region will have its own seniority list (where all workers are listed in order of their seniority).
You can contact the union to see the list for your plant, and the company should have it posted on the employees’ bulletin board.
Wages & Benefits
Because each company and your Union have a different Collective Agreement, the wages and benefits are also different. Please use the link at the bottom of this page for a copy of your Contract.
An index at the beginning of the contract will help you find things. If you can’t, please contact your union — UFAWU-Unifor.
Negotiations
Collective Agreements are negotiated between the union and the company and apply to all workers in the plant. New contracts are negotiated when the present ones end. Canadian Fishing Company’s Collective Agreement ends on April 15, 2021.
Before the Contract ends, a Negotiating Committee will be elected from union members in the plants that are affected by the Contract. Union staff and the Union Negotiating Committee will bargain with the Company, report back to the members on progress, and finally take a vote to accept or reject. If the new Collective Agreement is accepted by the workers, then the Contract is signed and negotiations are over until the next time.