Controversy around busing, a police-monitored train picket and observations from Flin Flon MLA Clarence Pettersen.
Those are among the latest developments from the nearly month-long partial strike at Hudbay.
IAM Local 1848 leaders are upset at the NDP government for awarding a permit to Charlie’s Charters, the bus company transporting non-striking workers across IAM picket lines.
“We think the headline should read ‘NDP supports Hudbay in strike,’” said IAM vice-president Blair Sapergia.
“Why would they want to get involved in that?”
IAM president Rene Beauchamp was equally dismayed given that a government claiming to be union-friendly issued the permit.
Permit
Saskatchewan-based Charlie’s Charters received the permit to transport Hudbay employees and security workers to and from the company’s operations in Flin Flon and at the Lalor and Reed mines outside Snow Lake.
Manitoba’s Motor Transport Board (MTB), which issued the permit on May 13, was aware Hudbay would use the buses amid a strike.
“This approval is as a result of a labour dispute requiring transportation services of which no Manitoba carrier is available to provide the services requested,” read a notice issued by the MTB.
IAM now wants Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton to revoke the permit, but government spokeswoman Rachel Morgan said that’s not possible.
Morgan said there is no mechanism for the minister to intervene in the issuance or cancellation of a permit issued by the MTB.
The MTB is an arm’s-length regulatory agency, she said, and does not consider the purpose of vehicles when issuing permits.
“Regulatory permits are issued based on the safety of the vehicles, maintenance records and appropriate licensing,” Morgan said, “and any concerns about these issues should be documented and sent to the Transport Board for their investigation.”
Pettersen, the MLA, echoed those comments.
“The Transportation Board gives out the permits – it’s not the government,” he said. “These are impartial people.”
The permit issued to Charlie’s Charters is good for one year, though just how long the company’s services are needed may hinge on the length of IAM’s strike.
Hudbay employees have told The Reminder the buses were presented as an option to avoid picket-induced lineups.
They said they swipe their ID cards upon boarding the buses and are deducted pay if they choose to take their own vehicle to work and are late as a result of the pickets.
But Sapergia said the only workers arriving late are those on buses that run behind schedule.
IAM is also making an issue of the MTB’s decision to award the busing permit to a non-Manitoba company.
Sapergia said IAM’s concern with the permit is based on principle, as the buses “don’t change a thing for us one way or the other.”
Both Beauchamp and Sapergia declared that IAM will now do everything it can to defeat the NDP government and Pettersen, a New Democrat.
“By making sure everybody understands that they have lost their way,” said Sapergia when asked how that will be accomplished.
Pettersen said he would like IAM’s support but added democracy allows people to vote for the candidates they prefer.
“I didn’t become an MLA to be popular,” he said. “I came to do what I think is best for my constituents.”
Pettersen encouraged the IAM leaders to compare the NDP with the Progressive Conservatives in terms of union policy.
“It seems like they’re making a judgment and not really investigating what we stand for,” he said, adding that his party has “fought well” for unions and will continue to do so.
Train proceeds
Meanwhile, IAM members picketed a Hudbay-bound freight train last Saturday night, May 23, but unlike a previous picket, the engineer did not stop.
Minutes before the train approached the Third Avenue crossing near Gas Bar, two RCMP officers arrived on scene.
The Mounties and picketers were cordial with each other as the officers stood near the tracks to monitor the situation.
Shortly before 10 pm, with nearly 30 placard-waving picketers and supporters nearby, the train proceeded across Third Avenue uninterrupted.
“Police observed the picketers at the location during a routine patrol and met with and reminded them to keep a safe distance and off private [Hudson Bay Railway] property,” said RCMP spokesman Sgt. Bert Paquet. “There were no concerns.”
IAM also picketed a Hudbay-bound train on May 13. On that day, the engineer stopped his locomotive for about two hours, a delay IAM said was a show of union solidarity.
Cheques
Elsewhere, IAM members had until Monday to pick up their first strike pay cheques. Picketers are earning $150 a week.
In addition to strike pay, IAM had, as of late last week, received about $3,500 in cash donations from the general public, Beauchamp said.
“It just comes in in spurts,” he said. “People stop and shake my hand and give me money.”
Beauchamp said the donated dollars will be used for emergencies such as members who need to buy food or baby formula.
IAM’s emergency fund received a boost last Friday, May 22 when a non-striking Hudbay employee informed the union he will be donating 10 per cent of his income.
The employee, who asked that his name not be published, was the first to make such a commitment but hopes others will follow suit.
Tensions
Though he has avoided taking sides in the labour dispute, Pettersen said he’s certain tensions are running high within IAM.
“It’s tough right now because I’m sure negotiations, if there’s any going on, [are] not working because they’re still not back to work,” he said, “and there’s future negotiations with other unions that are coming on and so there’s a lot of pressure.”
With IAM’s strike continuing and job action by other unions still possible, Pettersen said the mood across Flin Flon is one of concern.
“A lot of people are concerned,” he said. “Young people are concerned because if they bought a house, a car, a quad, they want to make payments. Everybody is concerned for sure and the quicker this comes to an end, the better it is for the community. But having said that, there’s still negotiations with other unions that have to come about, so this could be longer than we like.”
Protest
Meanwhile, on its website IAM promoted a protest against Hudbay that took place last week in Toronto, where the company is headquartered.
Among those scheduled to participate was a speaker from Pukatawagan-based Mathias Colomb Cree Nation, which has demanded Hudbay shut down its Lalor and Reed mines.
The protests also highlighted three ongoing lawsuits against Hudbay, worth a combined $55 million, related to the Fenix nickel project in Guatemala formerly owned by the company.
The lawsuits allege security forces at the mine site gang-raped women, murdered a community leader and shot and paralyzed a young father.
Hudbay has denied any wrongdoing. The alleged rapes occurred in 2007, more than a year before Hudbay got involved in Guatemala.
