talks with striking workers break down No active negotiations, no future mediation dates set after 14 hours of bargaining
Western Forest Products Inc. says negotiations with the United Steelworkers union representing workers in a long-running coastal B.C. strike ended without resolution on the weekend.
The company says no active negotiations are occurring and no future mediation dates have been scheduled after 14 hours of bargaining occurred on Saturday and Sunday supervised by two independent mediators.
CEO Don Demens says the mediators informed the company talks were over after it presented a contract offer.
Demens says the company offered a five-year agreement with a $2,000 signing bonus and wage increases of two per cent per year for the first four years and 2.5 per cent in the fifth year.
He says the company also agreed to drop proposals to modernize agreements, as well as pension plan alternatives opposed by the union, but didn't go along with Steelworker demands for a shorter-term agreement, bigger wage hikes and less shift flexibility.