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a -- ee ss. a ' i i t 5 A sr a------ -------- VE ---- EG ----------- { a -- ~ > Vol. 127 No.38 Faced with 12 unpaid days Union workers reject social By Scott Anderson Port Perry Star ~~ . Scugog's unionized workers have rejected the township's So- cial Contract offer opting in- stead for fail-safe legislation. The Canadian Union of Pub- lic Employees (CUPE) members rejected the local agreement at a meeting last week which saw tend. Under fail-safe the members could be faced with up to 12un- paid days off. As well the town- ship could be forced to cut back on a number of services. John Cherry, CUPE'$ répre- sentative, called the township's offer "vague." Mr. Cherry called for specifics in- the agreement before he made a decision on the docu- ment. "The position put forward (by the township) is very similar to the fail-safe method," he said. "The union is faced with try- ing to make a decision that they don't know the end result. Until regulations come down, it's open, vague and leaves a lot to be desired." The township has been in- structed to reduce spending as part of the government's plan to save $2 billion. Scugog's share is approximately $109,000. The township's local agree- ment contained provisions deemed necessary to reach the province's Expenditure Reduc- tion Target of $2 billion. By Julia Dempsey and Scott Anderson Port Perry Star A Scugog and District Sexual Assault/Ra Crisis Centre (SADSA/RCC) volunteer is con- cerned the clients are not receiv- ing the services they need. "I have been working as a vol- unteer at the SADSA/RCC since the first part of April, 1993, and I feel that the clients are not get- ting the services that we are supposed to be providing," says Marjorie Robinson in a letter to the Ministry of the Solicitor General, Community Initia- tives Unit. only 12 of its 29 members at- contract offer It included provisions ensur- ing that jobs would be protected, it would protect those employ- ees earning less than $30,000 per year, treat those earnthg more than that figure "in a fair and equitable manner," allow voluntary leaves of absence and reduce non-essential overtime hours. oo Township officials were dis- appointed by the union's choice to reject the offer and were left bewildered by the decision, "I'm very disappointed that - our bargaining employees did 'not see fit to approve the plan ithatwe put forward and' thats § was approved by management," Mayor Howard Hall said. "We felt it was a very fair plan and everybody was treated fairly." "If the reason for the union people not approving our pro- posed plan was because of the information or advice given to them by the CUPE representa- tive or that the proposal was not explained to them thoroughly or the fail-safe portion of Bill 48 was not explained thoroughly by the union representative this could be the reason why they did not agree." Mayor Hall said it was the in- tention of the township to pro- tect the employees and their jobs. He now fears that they may not be able to do this. "According to Bob Rae's bill, the worst case scenario is 12 days unpaid, but I hope it Turnto Page 2 Although the centre advertis- es it is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, Ms. Robinson claims the office doesn't hold regular hours. She is also concerned that the centre's only employee has re- fused to speak to clients in dis- tress, the staff often does not re- turn phone calls for several days, and the volunteers that are on call are not properly trained. (The centre employs three women. Two are on a leave of ab- sence due to illness.) "Many years ago I came to the SADSA/RCC as a client," Ms. Robinson says in her letter. "The staff was supportive and understanding, the atmosphere warm and my counsellor's pa- tience neverending. "That centre, the one that re- member, no longer exists and my heart bleeds for those who desperately need the services." Before sending the letter to the solicitor general's office, Ms: Robinson says she sent a copy to 'members of the centre's board of directors, asking for a reply be- fore August 4. : Ms. Robinson was invited to RYE | oe ~ attend the board. of directors meetingon A td: "They told me all the clients were being taken care of," Ms. Star. "They'renot." ny 2 don't know what there is to backs on us," sheadded. Robinson told -the Port Perry . the board of directors, could not bereached for comment. . Sarena Williamson, execu- 'tive director of SADSA/RCC, re- fused comment on the situation, directing the Star to its legal counsel. However, Les Smith, legal counsel for the centre, de- Concerns voiced about crisis ce ainéd from turning their . clined tooffer any com: mént. ~ Durham East MPP Gord Mills, who also serves as Parlia- mentary Assistant to the Solici- . tor General, told the Port Perry Star that he was aware of the re- cent accusations directed at the centre but said they were being CEE TT ae Le Janet Edwards, president of an: this parspsative of the ministry, ts matter is well in hand,"hesaid. = = The SADSA/RCC was at the centre of some controversy last month when a confidential re- = port was leaked to the media concepning alleged improprie- ies, * Hs re Nu