Payroll increased by more than 45% in six years

Under the new employment contract that was accepted this week, some 2,000 ArcelorMittal Mines Canada workers – members of four locals – will be entitled to increases in excess of 45% (once all monetary benefits are factored in) for the term of the agreement.

Seventy-five percent of the workers in Local 5778 today ratified the new collective agreement, which includes wage increases totalling 25.6% over six years and significant improvements in pensions and other benefits.

The Union was also successful in getting the company to backtrack on its intention to make cuts to the pension plan for new workers, which would have resulted in the introduction of a new, legally questionable, “orphan clause”.

"Large companies everywhere are trying to take an axe to the defined-benefit pension plan. At the Fermont and Port-Cartier locations, we not only refused to create a two-tier system, we also succeeded in securing significant improvements to the pension plan,” indicated Alain Croteau, the USW/Syndicat des Métallos’ regional coordinator ... more