The union representing some Manitoba Hydro employees who help keep the power on say they have served the Crown Corporation with a strike notice.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers 2034 union sent a memo to members Sunday with the update.
“In keeping with previous practice, IBEW is willing to provide a minimum of two hours’ notice for site specific strike action, and to perform any duties necessary for safe operations during said two-hour period,” the memo reads.
“Should strike action become necessary, it will only receive two-hours’ notice before labour action begins. Hydro is now aware that it will have just a very short window in which to prepare for the impact that any strike action might generate.”
According to the union’s website, the group represents nearly 3,000 members — the vast majority of which are Hydro employees.
The site says those employees operate, maintain and repair all of Manitoba Hydro’s facilities — everything from the large generating stations to the trucks.
In another memo posted to the unions website from Tuesday, the union says members voted in favour of strike action during their bargaining for a new collective agreement.
“Members need to be assured that the union will exhaust every possible means of attaining a fair agreement and will do its utmost to avoid invoking a strike,” the memo reads.
Global News has reached out to the union and Manitoba Hydro for comment but has yet to hear back.
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