CORRECTION

NOTE: The original version of this news release was sent out this morning with the wrong contact number for AFL President Les Steel. The proper number is 780-475-4668

EDMONTON – A government plan to formally deny ambulance workers the right to strike will poison the relationship between paramedics and their employers and make it easier for the government to sweep service-related problems under the carpet, says the Alberta Federation of Labour.

In a brief submitted to a government taskforce today, the AFL said it’s not in the public’s best interest to see the government’s so-called �essential service� legislation expanded to cover emergency medical workers – thereby denying them the right to strike.
�If the recent dispute between paramedics and the City of Edmonton taught us anything, it’s that banning strikes and attempting to turn hard-working health care professionals into criminals simply does not work,� says AFL President Les Steel.

The AFL brief argues that any move to outlaw strikes will inevitably undermine the bargaining process and poison relations between employers and workers.
�When workers have the right to strike there is a clear incentive for both parties to compromise and work towards agreement at the bargaining table,� says the brief. �However, in situations where workers do not have the right to strike, the employer has no real incentive to bargain in good faith.�

When employers use strike bans as an excuse not to bargain, workers end up feeling �under-valued� and �brushed off�, says the brief. This poisons the relationship between employers and workers – and in the case of emergency medical services, it could lead to a deterioration in service levels and problems in attracting and retaining skilled staff.
The AFL also says that a ban on strikes will make it easier for the province and various municipal governments to sweep service-related problems under the carpet.

�During negotiations leading up to the recent paramedics’ strike in Edmonton, the paramedics wanted to talk about inadequate staffing levels and the shortage of ambulances on Edmonton streets – especially when compared to Calgary,� says Steel.

�But because the City was refusing to bargain in good faith, these issues were never addressed. Clearly, the public would have benefited from an open and frank discussion between management and the union on these issues. But that didn’t happen – largely because the City was relying on a strike-ban and binding arbitration to force a deal on the paramedics. This was a clear example of how removing the right to strike is not in the public interest.�

For more information contact:

Les Steel, AFL President @ 780-475-4668 (hm)