CASTLEGAR, B.C. – United Steelworkers union (USW) Local 1-405 announced today that the 11 USW members at StellerVista Credit Union at the Castlegar and Slocan Park branches have served 72-hour strike notice with the employer and will be in legal strike position as of Monday morning.
At issue is the employer’s insistence on concessions that would freeze wages and claw back hard-won provisions of their collective agreement that have been in place for decades.
“This is an attack on our members at the Castlegar and Slocan Park branches, pure and simple,” offered Veronica Tanner, USW Local 1-405 Financial Secretary and lead negotiator.
“After more than 11 months of bargaining with this employer, they still insist on the members agreeing to no wage increases, increasing the work week, rolling back overtime pay, watering down bargaining unit protection language – essentially, they want to gut our collective agreement. The membership isn’t going to stand for it,” Tanner said.
Formerly the Heritage Credit Union and prior to that, Castlegar Savings Credit Union, StellerVista Credit Union was formed following a merger of East Kootenay Community Credit Union and Heritage Credit Union in the fall of 2022, which was formally implemented in January 2023.
While workers at both locations have long been USW members, there has been a collective bargaining relationship at the Heritage credit union for some 50 years, compared to about 30 years at the EKCCU, leaving gaps and differences between language, wages and benefits.
The branches in Castlegar were among the first credit unions in B.C. to be organized, first gaining a collective agreement in 1975.
“It’s not acceptable to our membership or to the community that a well-established, community credit union in the Kootenays tries to force concessions and lower wages on its workers,” said Jeff Bromley, USW Wood Council Chair and staff representative assigned to the local union.
“This won’t be an attack on 11 members at the credit union, it will be an attack on the 4,000 USW members across the East and West Kootenays. We’ll be out on the line, if need be, in force.”
The USW’s bargaining committee is ready to return to the table and remains committed to negotiating a fair collective agreement for both parties, while recognizing that StellerVista enjoyed a five-fold increase in earnings in 2024.
“We’re ready to bargain but unless there is a monumental shift in the employer’s approach, there will be job action next week,” said Tanner.
USW Local 1-405 is a diverse union representing over 1,300 workers in sawmills, credit unions, insurance services, hotels, ski resorts and municipal government services in the East and West Kootenays.
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