The fear of an indefinite general strike among Bombardier’s 1,800 unionized workers in the greater Montreal area is now a thing of the past.
The latter voted Wednesday in a proportion of 73.4% in favor of the employer’s third offer presented since the start of this round of negotiations.
Slightly more than 80% (80.3) of the members of IAMAW Local Section 712 voted between 5 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. on this new so-called final offer, the only modification of which was related to the salary question, according to a spokesperson for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) affiliated with the FTQ, which represents these 1,800 employees of the Dorval and Saint-Laurent factories at Bombardier.
“Despite the fact that the offer was accepted, Bombardier will have work to do over the next five years to regain the confidence of the workers and rebuild the sense of belonging,” said Éric Rancourt, word of the union party and business agent of District 11 of the IAMAW, by way of press release Wednesday evening.
The new collective agreement is for a period of five years. It provides an average salary increase of 6.5% for the first year, retroactive to December 4, 2021, and an annual increase of 3% for the second and third year. The employer also offers the Consumer Price Index for the last two years of the new employment contract plus 0.5%, with a minimum totaling 1.5% and a maximum totaling 3%.
The other elements of the employment contract are the same as those presented at the meeting of June 11, 2022.
“Beyond salaries, we went to seek the guarantee that no task will be outsourced for the next five years, in addition to bringing work from subcontractors to our members,” Mr. Rancourt specified.
“We also obtained a clause for reducing overtime during layoffs in order to promote the rapid return of workers on the recall list,” he pointed out.
These 1,800 union members of Bombardier in Quebec had rejected the previous employer’s offer presented on June 11, also qualified as final, by a proportion of 76%.
Union members even held a one-day strike on June 13, before returning to work the next day to continue negotiations.
Last week, the union had therefore requested the presence of President and CEO Éric Martel during a meeting between representatives of the two parties in order to avoid the outbreak of an indefinite general strike in the two factories in Quebec. The big boss of Bombardier had accepted the invitation, according to the company.
The main points in dispute concerned the salary and the indexation of retirement pensions. The employer asked the union to be open about the duration of the collective agreement.
“The indexing of retirees’ pensions is an issue close to our hearts and which gave rise to heated discussions at the bargaining table,” said Local 712 President Christian Bertrand.
“It is a disappointment not to have succeeded in making Bombardier listen to reason […] nothing prevents us from returning to the charge during the next negotiation”, indicated Mr. Bertrand.
The new employment contract will be in effect until December 2026.