Workers at the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC) walked off the job Tuesday afternoon to back their demand for better wagers.
The 470 workers belong to the Saskatchewan Government and General Employees Union (SGEU).
Alan Evans, chair of the union negotiating committee, said talks have stalled and the contract expired in September 2009.
Evans says the government is offering five per cent over three years, but that doesn’t even keep up to the rate of inflation, and they also are not reimbursed for the true costs of using their vehicles for company business.
He says workers provide prompt and efficient delivery of insurance requirements for farmers and they are worthy of a reasonable pay increase.
Evans says workers had a lot of anxiety about striking because they know farmers are under a lot of pressure given the wet weather conditions this spring.
SCIC says the strike couldn’t come at a worse time with the flooding challenges currently facing many producers and say efforts will be made to serve customers as efficiently as possible.
A SCIC spokesperson says SGEU turned down their most recent offer of 5.5 per cent over three years and that SGEU withdrew their initial wage demand of 7.5 per cent over the same period and currently has no monetary offer on the table.
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