January 20, 2015

Your bargaining team has signed a tentative Memorandum of Agreement to extend the current collective agreement to the end of December 2015. A similar proposal was made to, and accepted by, our colleagues in the Unifor bargaining unit.

Under the proposed agreement, all existing provisions will continue unchanged. All employees in the bargaining unit will receive a wage increase of 2%, effective January 1 of this year. This puts discussion on all other matters on hold for several months.

Click here to read the Memorandum of Agreement.

It would be irresponsible for us to deny you the opportunity to express your opinion on the deal that is being offered. We encourage you to vote as your own interests dictate.

That said, we are less than enthusiastic about the proposal for one key reason: TVO has once again refused to allow CMG members access to the company’s hybrid pension plan – a plan that every other employee of the organization participates in as a matter of course. For reasons the company can’t or won’t explain in spite of our repeated and forceful requests, CMG members are viewed as second-class citizens when it comes to their retirement income.

We will hold an online ratification vote in the coming days; watch your e-mail for details as they become available. We are also planning to hold a membership meeting to allow you to ask your questions.

Your bargaining committee:

Mike Fitzpatrick
David Hawkins
Liane Kotler
Christine Lee
Gregg Thurlbeck, President, TVO Branch
Keith Maskell, CMG staff representative