The unlimited general strike that paralyzed operations at the Kruger plant in Crabtree for just over a month has just ended. Union members overwhelmingly supported the agreement in principle reached on July 2 between their representatives and the employer.
Members of the Crabtree Pulp and Paper Workers Union–CSN (STTPPC–CSN), who have been on strike since May 31, have approved the new employment contract by 84%, the union said in a press release.
The plant’s activities will gradually resume from Friday with the aim of operating at full capacity from Monday.
Among the terms of the agreement are monetary gains. The new employment contract provides for a salary increase retroactive to 1er May 2023 and a subsequent wage increase of 26.5% to 30% by April 2027. It also provides for an increase in the hourly rate for certain types of employment ranging from $0.50 to $2 as well as increased bonuses.
The employer has also committed to better regulating subcontracting and improving the group insurance plan offered to employees, as well as making the defined benefit pension plan sustainable. This will require investments of several million dollars on the part of the company, the press release states.
All of this leads the union to say that it has obtained a resounding victory at the end of 160 days of negotiations spread over more than ten months, which the union president, Éric Sourdif, describes as a “long and exhausting marathon.”
“At some point during the process, we understood that management was pushing us towards a labor conflict. From the beginning, it underestimated our collective capacity to fight to gain respect. […] “Labor disputes always leave scars and cause suffering. But we come out of this adventure with our heads held high,” he said.
“In fact, each time we have integrated practices, it represented a brake on the arbitrary management of the employer. In this sense, we have achieved our objectives and made major gains in this negotiation,” added the union officer.
According to the union, “it was the arrival of representatives from the Toronto corporation” that made it possible to break the deadlock and reach a settlement.
The previous collective agreement expired on April 30, 2023.
The Canadian Press has attempted to obtain comment from Kruger.