Frustration builds amongst Serco workers

Service employees at Labrador base wait for news on new contract

On April 1 the federal government signed a new service contract for 5 Wing Goose Bay and now, over two months later, the union says they still don't know what it may mean for the workers.

Johnathon Cull, president of the Union of National Defence Employees Local 90125, told Saltwire Network there are a lot of angry and stressed workers at the base, and when they try to get more information from the contractor, Serco, they're told negotiations are ongoing and details aren't available.

Cull said they've been told by Serco there will be staffing changes, but not when or how many, and that worries every worker.

“People are really stressed, there's no doubt,” Cull said. “People don't want to make plans or book vacations because they don't know if they'll have a job next month.”

Cull said he understands there are a lot of details for Serco to work out with the Department of National Defence, but people are at a breaking point and need to know what's happening.

Since the new contract was signed, he said, there have been 10 voluntary layoffs, and they're worried about how many more voluntary, or involuntary, layoffs are coming. All they've been told is more are coming.

“They haven't told us the when, the where, the how, and it's creating an atmosphere at the workplace that's crazy stressful,” he said. “You can walk down the hallway and see the stress on people's faces. You can see the frustration on their faces. They just want to know if they have a job or not.”

When the contract was announced, a federal government news release stated it protected 300 jobs in the region, and the union told Saltwire at that time it was

concerning because their workforce is closer to 350. Each lost position is a blow to the community, Cull said, and the concern of not knowing, combined with the COVID19 pandemic and the bleak economic outlook of the province, is putting a massive amount of stress on workers.

He said they just want some communication on what's going on, how many jobs are potentially going to be cut and when they will have concrete answers, and, if they don't get them soon, they may have to take further action.

“If I went in there now and told people we were going to the gate, they would in a heartbeat,” Cull said. “I don't doubt that at all. That's not what people want, they just want answers.”

Lake Melville MHA Perry Trimper told Saltwire he's been hearing from people about the concerns and he hopes it can be resolved soon without any labour interruption. He has contacted senior people at the base, he said,

and he's been told similar things, that the contract is still being worked on.

“What I've been encouraging all parties to do is just explain that,” he said. “The dialogue needs to get out in the open. If people aren't hearing anything, they might start imagining something else. They need to keep people updated on this transition until it's finished.”

Saltwire contacted Serco about the union's concerns, but did not receive a reply by deadline.