Following a meeting today with government representatives, Manitoba Federation of Labour President Kevin Rebeck delivered the following message to media on behalf of Manitoba's public sector unions:
Government officials again declined to answer questions about the province’s fiscal outlook and the assumptions underpinning it.
By denying basic financial information the Premier and the Finance Minister are preventing public sector unions from participating in a meaningful consultation.
In the meeting, however, we did present some potential fiscal scenarios, based on the information we’ve been able to gather ourselves.
The officials were unwilling to confirm whether the government is open to options other than legislation.
And, they did not elaborate on any of the legislative measures mentioned in the government’s recent letter.
The officials who attended the meeting today were clear that they are not decision makers in this process, and they are taking direction.
We want to work constructively with the province to find a balanced approach that includes returning to balance over an eight-year period.
But it seems that Premier Pallister is more focused on cuts to public services and reopening signed contracts than protecting those services and the people who deliver them.