HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, Jan. 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Three hundred private sector cleaners could soon be on the picket lines across the HRM. The workers, who are employed by GDI Integrated Facility Services, have been without a contract since the end of September 2024. A final conciliation meeting between the employer and the workers’ Union, SEIU Local 2, is scheduled for Thursday, January 23, 2025. If an agreement is not reached, the strike will start on Monday, January 27, 2025. A mass rally at Purdy’s Wharf is being planned.
The cleaners are seeking raises that keep up with the increased cost of living, improved access to health benefits, retirement security, and language that would protect them from unfair workloads and protect their jobs from being subcontracted out.
There is a sense that momentum is building amongst the employees. This past weekend over 170 workers attended strike preparedness trainings at the Homewood Suites in downtown Halifax. A vast majority have publicly pledged to actively take part in the strike.
“I heard hotel staff said that this was the largest union meeting they had ever seen at the property,” said Omar Joof, one of the workers and a member of the union’s bargaining committee. “At one point there was standing room only.”
Workers overwhelmingly approved a strike on November 16, 2024. So far, not enough progress has been made on workers’ main concerns to avoid a strike. In fact, GDI isn’t negotiating with the union and hasn’t responded to the union’s proposals for the last two negotiating meetings, including the first conciliation meeting.
“GDI workers in Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver have most of these things we are asking for,” said John Paluku, one of the cleaners. “Why is GDI leaving Nova Scotian workers behind? We’ve seen the highest cost of living increases in the country. We will not be bullied into accepting a substandard contract.”
Most GDI cleaners in the HRM make between $15.60 and $16.45 an hour and are living paycheck to paycheck. The minimum wage in Nova Scotia is $15.20 as of April 1, 2024.
“Two thirds of workers do not qualify for health benefits,” said Joof. “All workers deserve the peace of mind of having benefits and shouldn’t be forced to choose between paying for medications and rent.”
GDI cleaners work at nearly fifty properties in Halifax, including the Ferry Terminals, commercial offices like Purdy’s Wharf, malls like the Halifax Shopping Centre and Mic Mac Mall, and government properties like the RCMP headquarters in Dartmouth.
For more information visit www.JusticeforJanitors.ca
SEIU Local 2 represents 20,000 workers in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta. We are proud members of the largest, fastest growing, and most dynamic union in North America.
Media Contact:
Diego Mendez
dmendez@seiulocal2.ca
416-476-7762
