Workers at Valley View Villa in Stellarton say a strike could resume as contract talks stall over concessions the employer wants added to a new deal, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees.
CUPE says staff at the Pictou County long-term care home spent nine weeks on strike and six weeks in renewed local negotiations, but the employer, High Crest Enterprises, is still seeking changes the union argues would leave workers with terms worse than their current contract.
The union says those concessions include changes to how vacation time is earned, which could reduce available vacation, and adjustments to health insurance coverage.
Betty Best, president of CUPE Local 2330, said workers fought alongside long-term care staff across Nova Scotia for better wages, but the employer now wants them to accept concessions before receiving the wage increases negotiated at the provincial lead table.
High Crest Enterprises is not represented by Health Association Nova Scotia (HANS), which means Valley View Villa is not required to follow the provincial lead table agreement that covers most long-term care homes in the province.
CUPE long-term care coordinator Kim Cail said that while only homes represented by HANS must follow the protocol, employers have historically accepted the same deal to keep wages and benefits consistent across Nova Scotia.
Cail said this round of bargaining is different because the employer is seeking concessions that must be accepted before workers can receive the wage improvements negotiated at the provincial level.
