Our Tuesday Members' Memo will be bi-weekly over the summer

Watch for our TMM every second Tuesday over the summer. We'll return to our weekly newsletters in September.

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GSU scholarship applications are in the hands of our scholarship committee

Thank you to everyone who applied to our scholarship program. Our scholarship committee will be meeting over the summer to select this year's five recipients who will each receive a $2,000 scholarship to assist them in their studies.

Applicants will be notified of the scholarship committee's decision.

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ILWU Canada standing up for their members

International Longshore Workers Union (ILWU) Canada has been negotiating with the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) since early this year. Progress has been slow, and the BCMEA was unwilling to engage in any meaningful way on substantive issues. On July 1, 2023, over 7,000 members of ILWU Canada made the decision on go strike and pressure their employers. 

GSU has a long history going back decades and has been affiliated with the ILWU since 1995. Our shared work moving Canadian grains and food products made the relationship one of solidarity. GSU has never backed down from supporting our sisters and brothers in ILWU Canada, and this time is no different. 



Last week GSU General Secretary was in B.C. to attend a Local 9 – Trowu Nutrition membership meeting. Local 9 members are preparing to engage in contract renewal bargaining next year and they clearly understand the need to stand up when worker needs are unmet. They were proud to show their support for all members of ILWU on the picket line. Torgerson also walked the picket lines and heard directly from members what their issues were and the harm their employers were causing to their industry and livelihoods.

“Working people must realize that what we need from our employers we must go out and get. We can’t wait for them to do the right thing because their interest is not in lifting up the working class.” Said GSU General Secretary Steve Torgerson. “We must stand up and demand fair pay, safe conditions and good jobs that ensure we can thrive, not just get by.”

The Westcoast strike was interrupted by a mediated agreement, but yesterday the ILWU Canada caucus voted down this proposed settlement and returned to the picket lines. GSU will continue to support ILWU, and we ask all GSU members to support our fellow workers by talking to others about the strike and by following them on social media.

GSU staff reps have been answering questions that Local 1 (Viterra) members had about their recent STIP payments

The company's STIP policy states:

"Employees on certain leaves of absence or layoff are eligible for a STIP payment based on time worked during the fiscal year. This includes, but is not limited to, maternity/adoption/parental leave, short-term and long-term disability leaves, layoff and other approved leaves."

The interpretation some employees have made was that if they are on one of these approved leaves, they should be paid the full STIP.

GSU contacted Viterra HR representatives and confirmed that while an employee on leave may be eligible, the amount of STIP that an employee is entitled to is pro-rated on actual time worked and influenced by their personal performance review.

Maintaining eligibility for STIP while on an approved leave of absence only becomes an issue if the leave of absence overlaps the date that the STIP is to be paid. For example, the STIP is typically paid by March 31 each year, so if you are on an approved leave of absence during this time, you are eligible to be paid your STIP for the time you were actively at work.

Another example is if you are on a three-month leave of absence from work for long-term disability and then returned to work, you have worked 9 months of the year. You are eligible for the STIP for the year, but you are only going to be paid at most 75 percent of your STIP as you only worked 75 percent of the year. Nine months out of twelve months equals 75 percent.

If you have questions about your leave and how your STIP is affected, don't hesitate to contact your GSU staff rep.

If you need advice or ideas about how to handle a workplace situation, call your GSU staff rep. Our services are provided to you as part of your union dues. There is no additional charge for assisting you.

Local 1 (Viterra Ops & Maintenance) & Local 2 (Viterra Head Office) bargaining committees reach tentative agreement with employer

A tentative agreement was reached on July 13. Once wording of the tentative agreement has been agreed upon, GSU’s Local 1 Board of Delegates and Local 2 executive will convene separately to confirm the tentative offer is strong enough to take to their membership for a ratification vote.

If the Board of Delegates and Local Executive determine the agreement is sufficient to proceed to a vote, the tentative agreement will be presented to Local 1 and 2 members who will have the opportunity to either accept or reject the tentative agreement through a confidential ratification vote process.

If the majority of ballots cast accept the tentative agreement, negotiations cease and the agreement forms the basis of a new collective agreement. If the tentative agreement is rejected by the majority of members voting, then GSU bargaining committees will return to the bargaining table to fight for a better deal.

“Member participation in this process and support for their bargaining committee has shown the company that the membership means business,” said GSU general secretary and bargaining spokesperson Steve Torgerson.

Watch your email and the GSU web page for details about voting and information on the tentative agreement.

If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to contact a bargaining committee member or your GSU staff representative.

You can read previous updates on the VITERRA BARGAINING page on GSU's main web page under the Bargaining menu tab. Contact Mason@gsu.ca to be added to our bargaining update email list.

GSU bargaining committee members are Local 1 – Jim Brown (Balgonie), Wilfred Harris (Carnduff), Shannon Antonenko (Lloydminster), David Barrett (Gull Lake), Travis Brewer (Saskatoon), Dale Lysitza (Lloydminster) and Broc Goodwin (Moose Jaw); Local 2 – Sheila Tran, Howard Wilson and Kaylee Kruger with assistance from GSU staff representatives Mason Van Luven and Steve Torgerson (GSU bargaining committee spokesperson). Don't hesitate to contact your bargaining committee with any questions or concerns you may have.

Local 5 (Western Producer) bargaining impasse: mediation to continue July 26 & 27

Above: A sign near the AIM site.

Below: Local 5 members sporting their GSU t-shirts and sharing some tea in their GSU mugs.

Ag in Motion (AIM), Western Canada's largest outdoor farm expo, has kicked off. Amidst the excitement, GSU Local 5 members are using this platform to send a clear signal to WPP Management: they are ready to resume negotiations.

After weeks of stalled talks, both parties have agreed to further mediation, with dates set for July 26 and 27. GSU hopes that these sessions will provide an opportunity to address our concerns and work towards a fair and equitable agreement. GSU members are banding together to show support for their bargaining committee and to let management know we won't back down.

The bargaining committee comprises Michelle Houlden, Laurie Michalycia, Donna Driediger (bargaining co-spokesperson/GSU staff) and Steve Torgerson (bargaining co-spokesperson/GSU general secretary).

Local 16 (Lake Country Co-op) - final wording of the new collective agreement is approved, the agreement is signed

Lake Country Co-op and GSU representatives have completed their review, final wording has been agreed upon and the new collective agreement has been signed. The collective agreement will be put on the web page by week's end and put in the queue for formatting into booklets for distribution to members. 

Local 17 (Discovery Co-op) - the new collective agreement is now available on our web page

The agreement has been signed and it's available on our web page at GSU.ca. We'll be also be formatting the new collective agreement into new collective agreement booklets for Local 17 members soon.

Local 18 (Lloydminster & District Cooperative Association) - new collective agreement wording being finalized

On May 25, members of Local 18 voted in favour of accepting the proposed memorandum of agreement. Steps have been made toward incorporating the changes into the collective agreement. Once wording is finalized and agreed upon, we will make copies of the agreement and distribute them to members.



Local 19 (Prairie Co-op) - current collective agreement expires Dec. 31, 2023

With their collective agreement set to expire on Dec 31, 2023, Local 19 will be our last Co-op local to round out what has been nearly two consistent years of negotiations with Federated Co-operatives Limited and other Co-ops across Saskatchewan, headed by GSU staff representative Brian Lark. Local 19 will benefit from the lessons learned and the priorities shared at those tables as we gear up for negotiations that will likely center on the cost of living. 

In the coming months, GSU staff rep Mason Van Luven is planning to engage with the members of Local 19 to assess their priorities, hear from them, and elect bargaining committee members.

Kurt Vonnegut Warned Us About the Dangers of Automation

Kurt Vonnegut's 1952 novel, "Player Piano," portrays a dystopia following a Third World War where automation makes most work unnecessary. This novel was a futuristic warning about machines taking away jobs and their effects on society.

The warning is coming true, and we are seeing automation and robotics steadily taking jobs out of the economy. Often a defence of this is that this is our world progressing, or this is just making things more efficient, or now we will have high-paying jobs that fix the machines, but the reality is that it is harming society.

Society is what happens when people gather together to support each other. We can't lose sight of the fact that generating efficiency with automation that has a net negative effect on good jobs is not ok.

Learn more here:

• Kurt Vonnegut Warned Us About the Dangers of Automation
• ‘WALL-E’ shows what on Earth might happen to the human race