A member’s Guide to a strike

There are a series of steps in the bargaining process that must be completed before a legal strike action can be called by the PIPSC President:

1. Negotiations must be at an impasse
2. The group must request permission to hold a strike vote from the PIPSC President
3. A strike vote must be conducted amongst the group members where a majority votes in favour of strike action
4. The PIPSC President authorizes strike action by the group

Once a strike is authorized, you will hear from PIPSC about next steps. Strike action can take many forms and utilize a variety of tactics. These vary depending on the issues, the workplace and the members.

At the same time, PIPSC and your group will already have a strike plan in place and will be setting up committees to work on various aspects of the strike. You may get asked to volunteer for committees and picket line duty.

Examples of committees and picket line volunteer roles:

• Picket Captains are responsible for
  • Knowing the the issues in dispute;
  • Helping carry out the group strike plan;
  • Enlisting members as picketers;
  • Maintaining the picketers volunteer log;
  • Managing situations that arise on the picket line.
  
  
• Member Engagement & Activities Committee is responsible for
  • Brainstorming ideas for activities;
  • Assigning Leaders for each activity;
  • Working with the Communications Committee to invite members to activities;
  • Making sure all members feel included;
  • Reaching out and connecting with members where they are.
  
  
• Communications Committee is responsible for
  • Setting up communications channels for the strike;
  • Creating content to distribute to members;
  • Working closely with the bargaining team to coordinate content.
  
  
• Social Media Committee is responsible for
  • Using various social media sites to distribute content from the communications committee;
  • Following up with members on social media answering questions;
  • Organizing digital actions for remote workers or those working from home.
  
  
• Education Committee is responsible for
  • Working in close cooperation with Institute staff to schedule education and training sessions during a strike.
  
  
• Logistics & Administration volunteers are responsible for
  • Accounting & tracking expenditures;
  • Ordering food and supplies for the picket line;
  • Staffing the strike office;
  • Fielding members calls, etc.
  
  
• Daycare Committee is responsible for
  • Addressing member needs in an area. This committee will find a facility close to the area where members are striking and work to staff the center.

Getting involved in your group’s member activities during the bargaining process, long before the talks of a strike even begin, is the first step in being prepared for a potential strike. Doing so shows the employer that the group can easily mobilize its members in activities and demonstrates that the same can be done to achieve a good settlement.

Additionally, to be prepared for a potential strike, you should:

• Make sure you are signed up as a PIPSC union member and that your information is up to date.
• Understand what is at stake for your group and what the outstanding issues are at the bargaining table.
• Understand the union’s strike strategy.
• Visit your group's page on the PIPSC website for bargaining updates and information on upcoming events.
• Take the opportunity to participate in your bargaining team or group executive’s committees and activities.
• Keep up with email communications from your group. Join the group’s social media channels.

Going on strike means you may not be getting paid. While a general strike means everyone is on strike in your group, rotating strikes can mean some people are off work at different times. We may also take other actions that don’t impact your finances as much. Whatever form of strike we are utilizing you need to be prepared for this financially.

• If you have a mortgage, speak to your bank about pausing payments. Many financial institutions will work with borrowers to accommodate them during a period of work stoppage.
• Look at what funds you may be able to access to bridge any loss of income, such as savings, loans from family, lines of credit and looking at other employment options during the strike. Strike activities will not require you to be on the picket line full time so there is time to take on other work in the event of an extended strike.
• Look at what expenses you can easily cut or suspend right away, like gym memberships, streaming services, eating out, etc.
• You will receive strike pay for days where you take part in picket line duty or other approved activities. Strike pay in PIPSC is a minimum of $50 per day. Strike pay is not taxable income according to the Canada Revenue Agency.

 

Union members

As a union member in Canada you have a legal right to strike. As a union member you must withdraw your labour and stop going to work for a strike to be effective. A strike is a demonstration of workers power and an active fight for your rights. Make sure you:

• Participate in strike aversion and related support to your strike committees.
  • Before a strike is called your union will increase pressure on the employer with actions like lunch time pickets, letter writing, or other actions in the workplace to show the employer we are organized. Participating in these activities is essential to winning.
• Fulfill your picket duty by walking the picket line.
  • The picket line is the most important part of a strike. It is a symbol of resistance and the power of the union. Strong picket lines are a sign of the support the union has in its fight with the employer.
  • If you can’t walk a picket line or require an accommodation, contact your union representative. There are many other activities you can assist with in support of the strike that qualify you for strike pay.
• Respect the picket lines, don’t be a scab.
  • Crossing a picket line is known as scabbing and this refers to people who continue to work during strike action. Don’t be a scab!
  • If you are working virtually you can also respect the picket line by not working. The strike committee will have activities remote workers can take part in.

  Members working in essential services

  In some workplaces, some work is identified as an essential service. Essential workers are individuals who perform services that are critical to maintaining the health and safety of Canadians. It does not include economic considerations or public services which, if stopped, might create disruption in people’s lives.

  Essential positions are identified by the employer in negotiations with the union. Where a dispute over essential services exists between the employer and the union, a neutral decision-maker will usually be called on to make a decision.

  Designated workers will be informed if they occupy an essential position and will be contacted by the employer. Essential workers are not permitted to strike due to the impact on public health and safety.

  Essential workers are still encouraged to take part in member activities and picketing on their unpaid breaks or outside of working hours. To show solidarity, they can also donate part of their pay to defense funds to help workers who are striking.

The typical image of a strike is usually one of picket lines in front of a worksite and workers carrying signs. Yet strikes appear differently depending on the nature of the work performed by the striking group, the labour legislation that governs the work, and the employer. Regardless of the kind of strike, the objective remains the same: to persuade the employer to adopt a position acceptable to the union and its members at the bargaining table. Below are the definitions of different types of strikes.

Work to Rule:

This is often an early tactic used in strikes to bring pressure on the employer. It’s when workers obey all the laws and provisions of their collective agreement applied to their work but perform their work more slowly. This is an effort to stall productivity. Even though members are still technically working, this is a form of striking.

Practice Strike / Information Picket:

When workers in a legal strike position take part in a short withdrawal of their labour to demonstrate to the employer what a strike could mean. Sometimes workers even stay at work but just refuse to work. It can also be before the legal strike mandate has been reached. It can be a picketing activity before or after work hours or on the lunch break. This practice workplace activity needs to be conducted in such a way that no time theft occurs and it’s not on the employer’s premises.

Rotating / Partial Strikes:

When a small percentage of the membership is asked to go on strike at a given time. This form of striking is used to put parts of the workforce on strike that can have the most effect on the employer. This form of striking is also used to cycle through regions, departments, and different services that the employer provides.

Staggered Strike:

A staggered strike is when a local or group goes on strike with little notice, and could be asked to go back to work on very short notice. It is meant to keep the employer guessing which location or department will be a target, when it will strike and for how long.

General Strike:

When all the workers of a group go on strike at the same time.

Picket lines are the most visible part of striking. It’s when striking members gather, in large numbers, outside of their workplace to create disturbance and inconvenience to the operations of the employer. At a picket line, members typically rally to publicly communicate a message with chants and signs – in efforts to increase pressure on the employer to achieve a fair settlement at the bargaining table.

Picketing Dos

• Stay informed about all strike activities.
• Check-in with your Strike Committee for guidance on appropriate messaging to use for your signs.
• Respect the time and location of the picket line.
• Fulfill your picket duties as assigned by the Strike Committee.
• Dissuade other workers from crossing a picket line with rational arguments. But your role as a striking member is to respectfully fulfill your picket duty, not to police others.

Don’ts

• Don’t use physical restraint to stop others from crossing the picket line or scabbing.
• Striking can be highly emotional, but members must not throw slurs and insults to people opposing the strike or scabbing.
• Don’t use picket signs to slander others, tell lies, or spread misinformation.
• Should you be stopped by the authorities, do not resist and call your picket captain.

False. Strikes are done in the interest of all workers and the public. A strike at one workplace will set the standard for other workplaces across the country by using updated language in their new contracts and improvements to workers' rights and benefits. Future contracts, whether a collective agreement or an individual contract, use established contracts as a reference.

False. Unionized workers have the right to strike in Canada when contract negotiations fail and members have voted to strike. The additional legal requirements for striking are determined by the jurisdiction covering the workplace. Some workers are designated as essential and are prevented from striking by legislation, but this is limited to specific occupations.

False. Often, the monetary gains made by strikers surpass the short-term pain of striking when considering the long-term impact on and compounding effect of wage increases.

Strikes also happen for items that are fundamental to workers’ dignity and respect – like health and safety issues, pensions, benefits, and other important issues for workers. The improvements to the lives of workers and their families aren’t only measurable in many cases but bring members together and make the union stronger.

False. There is no doubt that strikes have an impact – but only when members maintain solidarity and support for the strike. An employer can’t conduct business without its employees so strikes do have an impact. Often, just signs that a union is preparing for a strike action can prompt an employer to negotiate more seriously.

PIPSC maintains a Strike Fund through regular contributions of members. It is replenished when it is used.

Strike pay is essential to conducting effective strikes. As a member on strike, you are entitled to strike pay when you take part in picket activity or other strike duties assigned by your Strike Committees.

Strike pay is paid by PIPSC, and is a minimum of $50 per day (tax-free).

Strike pay doesn’t reimburse your whole salary, so it’s important that you prepare for a strike by either trying to save a little prior to strike action, or through other means. PIPSC can establish other forms of support to members and this is determined as a group moves towards strike action.

The identification of what jobs are essential is a legal process – and something that is worked out early in bargaining well before a strike. It’s the employer, not the union that identifies which workers are essential. If you are deemed an essential worker, you will be notified by your employer, and you will continue to receive regular pay and benefits from your employer during the strike.

Time absent from work due to strike activity is not pensionable service and employer contributions are not made. Health, dental and disability plans usually continue coverage in the event of a strike unless directed by the employer to be discontinued. The situation will be communicated directly to you before any strike votes or actions so you know the specifics of your workplace.

Going into work while you are on strike is called scabbing. This includes continuing to work in any way during a strike whether physically crossing the picket line or doing so remotely.

Scabbing and crossing the picket line is a betrayal of the union and the strike. PIPSC can impose penalties on members who take these actions.

If you are on strike, the employer is not obliged to give you vacation pay. If you are pre-approved for vacation and it falls during a strike you will not receive vacation pay. You’ll keep your vacation credits and can take an approved vacation later, after the strike.

Yes, your EI benefits will continue if you are on maternity or parental leave when the strike starts. However, because the contract ceases to be valid the employer may terminate benefits such as supplemental benefits for maternity, and parental leave which are part of your contract.

Yes, it is possible to retire at any time, including during a strike. There may be financial implications due to the timing, in that you may not be entitled to the provisions of the collective agreement. It is recommended that you submit a “conditional retirement letter” before a strike is declared if you intend to retire in the event of a strike, to protect your rights under the collective agreement. Once we are on strike, there is no collective agreement.

There are many types of strike action and some involve continuing to work but slowing down or taking very short actions. So it's often not that simple a question to answer. The solidarity of the union is vitally important to successful strikes so not following strike protocols and directions can severely weaken our ability to achieve your goals.