TORONTO – Maintenance workers at select Bell Canada locations in Ontario and Quebec could walk off the job as early as Tuesday, according to their union.
The Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union (CEP) locals 27 and 34-0 have overwhelmingly rejected a final offer from their employer, Nexacor, after “several months” at the bargaining table, CEP said Monday.
Nexacor is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SNC-Lavalin. A Bell spokesperson confirmed to Cartt.ca that Nexacor is responsible for maintenance and repairs at some Bell building locations in Quebec and Ontario.
"We will do everything within our power to reach an acceptable settlement," said CEP's Ontario administrative VP Barb Dolan, in a statement. "But our members are prepared to take strike action unless the company makes significant improvements to its offer, especially in the important areas of wages and pension contributions. We have informed the company that we have set a deadline of noon on Tuesday, May 29th to hear back from them with clear commitments to improve their offer in these key areas."
Bell said that it is “always prepared to keep our operations running smoothly in any situation”.
– Lesley Hunter
