Back to SearchCUPE 882 employees returned to work Tuesday, December 12, 2023, after a 12-week strike, bringing an official conclusion to what ended up being a difficult experience for members of the public who experienced unacceptable behaviour on the picket line. While the City and its employees are now focused on transitioning back to work and re-establishing a cooperative relationship, the City continues to hear from residents about the conduct on the picket line.
“I would have expected that CUPE National would have demanded better of their members during the strike and established and enforced some respectable standards of conduct,” said Sherry Person, City Manager. “It is one thing to walk off the job. It is quite another to intimidate, harass and block access to children, seniors, and children with disabilities.”
Some of the actions taken violate CUPE’s published code of conduct, which reads, “CUPE is committed at all levels to creating a union which is inclusive, welcoming, and free from harassment, discrimination and all types of bullying and intimidation.”
“The actions taken by picketers fell well below CUPE’s standards and those it expects the employer to uphold,” added Person. “We continue to hear from parents and residents who are appalled by the behaviour and deeply concerned about how they and their children were treated. We would like the public to be assured that we are equally disappointed by the behaviour and wish that CUPE 882 would have publicly apologized to those teachers, parents, attendees, and children that have been affected.”
While on strike, CUPE members are not legally employees of the City of Prince Albert and therefore, their actions are not governed by discipline procedures that would normally be in place for this type of behaviour as employees of the City.
Individuals concerned with the behaviour on the picket line can still contact CUPE to report the behaviour and request follow-up. Ultimately, CUPE National is the organization that must take responsibility for these actions.
Prince Albert Office: 306-922-3895
National Office: https://cupe.ca/contact-cupe
Most of the bad behaviour on the picket line was targeted at the EA Rawlinson Centre for the Arts, the City’s local theatre where Little Mermaid Jr rehearsals and performances took place. Access to rehearsals was regularly blocked with videos taken of individuals attending, and on Thursday, December 7, students trying to attend a show were forced to depart the bus while it was parked on a busy street in the freezing rain. This included a bus of students with special needs.
Despite the attempts to interfere with the production, Little Mermaid Junior was among the most well-attended Junior productions to date. Attendance was just over 6000 attendees, matching the record-breaking attendance at the Beauty and the Beast Jr production last year.
With the strike now concluded, the City of Prince Albert would like to thank the production contractors, volunteers and performers at the EA Rawlinson Centre for their dedication and support for the Little Mermaid production and their ongoing support of the arts community, sports groups and the Raiders that came out to ensure concession services were maintained during Raider games and the general public for their patience with picketers and service disruptions over the last three months.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Sherry Person
City Manager
(306) 953-4395
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