Mississauga, Ont., Peel CAS workers reject offer in supervised vote

Have been on strike since September

Striking workers from the Children’s Aid Society of the Region of Peel (Peel CAS) in Mississauga, Ont., have rejected the latest offer due to its failure to address workload and job-evaluation concerns, according to the union.

The supervised vote was called by Peel CAS which forced members of Local 4914 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE 4914) to consider its offer.

“Instead of finding new ways to force us to vote on the same offer, they need to get back to the table and negotiate an offer that protects children and respects workers,” said Stephanie Zaine, of CUPE 4914.

Out of the 371 members who cast a ballot, 345 or 92.99 per cent, rejected the offer, said the union.

The 435 staff members have been on strike since Sept 18, according to the union.

This latest offer from Peel CAS was rejected by the bargaining team six weeks earlier.

“This offer showed no changes to what they’ve already seen and the members have definitively voted it down,” said Sonia Yung, president of CUPE 4914. “Now the way forward is to get back to the negotiating table. If that won’t do, we again ask the employer to agree to take these issues to arbitration and put an end to this strike before the holidays.”

CUPE 4914 has made a formal request to both the employer and the Ministry of Labour for Peel CAS to return to the bargaining table as soon as possible, said the union.

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