Catalyst Paper Collective Agreement
The local agreement 76 provides for a two percent pay increase in the first year, one percent in the second year, and then one percent every six months after, according to the source. The union recommends that its members adopt the agreement and the results of the ratification vote are expected to be announced on December 3, 2008. THE PPWC represents about 560 employees at the Crofton plant. “The union should be commended for its approach to solving the important issues facing the sector and our cost structure. We have reached an agreement that balances the needs of its members while helping to create a more profitable business that will focus on workplace safety and production orientation in everyone`s mind,” said Richard Garneau, President and CEO of Catalyst. Employees of the Crofton pulp mill sign a new collective agreement. (File photo) Few details of the new collective agreement have been published, with the exception of a statement from Catalyst Paper, which owns the mill, that it is pleased that the contract has been ratified. “We have worked hard to reach a negotiated agreement that recognizes employee contributions and reflects the changing realities of our business,” Catalyst said. “The commitment, commitment and understanding by both Catalyst`s and Local No. 2`s negotiating teams made this agreement possible. The atypical nature of these negotiations meant that everyone had to take a holistic view to adapt the countless components to a plan that was part of these periods of economic turbulence.
By ratifying this agreement, the Crofton pulp and paper mill is better able to meet the challenges currently facing the sector,” said Lloyd Kelly, PPWC Local President #2 Crofton, BC – The Pulp and Paper Workers of Canada (PPWC), Local No. 2 and Catalyst Paper announced today that an interim agreement has been reached for the renewal of the collective agreement within the Crofton Division. The agreement covers the two priorities of a target of USD 80 per tonne for labour costs and through the PPWC Industry Pattern Agreement. The four-year agreement will enable the project to achieve competitive labour costs through innovation in labour practice and the implementation of new ways to reduce staff without the need for traditional redundancies and severance pay. Age and staff service allow for changes in the workplace that are required with a succession plan for older workers who leave the industry each year at a high rate. Catalyst is the largest producer of printing paper and newsprint in western North America and also produces commercial pulp and has the largest paper recycling plant in Western Canada. The company`s six plants have a total annual capacity of 2.8 million tonnes. Catalyst is headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada and its common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol CTL. “We believe this is a fair and competitive agreement, and we will continue to focus on the fact that Crofton is a safe, efficient and productive mill and an employer of choice for current and future generations of workers. A new four-year contract between Catalyst Paper Corporation and Unifor Locals 1 and 76 in Powell River has been approved by workers, according to Unifor`s national representative, Jim Dixon. In total, the company`s 630 employees have ratified six new collective agreements with Unifor and Canada`s public and private workers – stationery, paper and wood in Canada at Catalyst`s Crofton, Port Alberni and Powell River plants.
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