Business Manager Update — June 2026

Members of IBEW 2228,

Here is an update from the Business Office. I would like to get these out more often than I have been able to lately, but things have been busy. Bad news for the frequency of updates, but good news because I have a lot to share.

The Office

I would like to welcome Christine Griffin to the office, who is taking over from Aryane while Aryane is on maternity leave. Christine is truly an asset to the office and to our members. With 40 years of experience, including 10 years with the Department of National Defence and 20 years in the federal government, she brings a depth of knowledge that is difficult to overstate. She is hardworking, resourceful, and the kind of person who finds solutions.

Christine is the first point of contact at the office. Whether you have a question, are not sure where to start, or just need to be pointed in the right direction, do not hesitate to reach out to her. She is new to the role but she is already good at what she does.

I also want to take a moment to wish Aryane all the best as she welcomes a new addition to her family. We look forward to having her back.

My Current Priority

Representing members across all of Canada under 8 different bargaining agents means that truly understanding people’s working realities is something I will always have to work at. When I have essential travel or other reasons to be in a region, I try to add legs to the trip and visit as many member sites as I can while I am there.

The honest challenge is that we do not have a reliable database of member locations across the Union. This is hardest to address with our Federal members, simply because there are so many of you spread so widely across the country. I have requested a member list from the Treasury Board as required under article 13.01 of the collective agreement, but even when that comes together the information may be incomplete. In the meantime I am grateful to the local officers, Units and members who have already been reaching out. But there are workplaces we have never visited and members we have never spoken to, and that is something I want to change. If the Union has not been to your site, or if you have never had any contact with us, I want to hear from you.

The Coast Guard is a good example of what becomes possible when we have people on the ground. With Stewards and Officers at several sites, I was able to visit, listen, and identify common themes. I compiled those into a message to the Director General and the Commissioner, which you can read here. It gave me a real baseline to work from going forward.

I have been doing similar work with Rogers, Nasittuq and Nav Canada. The goal is to get there with everyone. Please reach out and let me know where you work and how many colleagues you have. I will find a way to come to you.

The Bargaining Agents

The largest issue for our Federal members is our upcoming collective bargaining. Our National Steering Committee will be meeting the week of June 15th in Ottawa to work through the roughly 130 proposals on the table. From this we will determine our bargaining priorities, form our negotiating team and set our strategy. I am expecting that we will have our first meeting with the Treasury Board negotiators in October.

For Nav Canada, a few things to mention. First, I have submitted a grievance regarding the merger of the Installation and Maintenance Tech 1 roles. I believe this grievance is necessary because as Nav Canada has been working through how to implement this change, it has become apparent that both the breadth and depth of knowledge required for this role have grown significantly relative to either of the original Tech 1 classifications. Second, I objected to the application of a Critical Staffing Incentive that was extended to only one Union. I made the case on equity grounds and reinforced it with historical arguments. That conversation is still ongoing and I am not in a position to share everything publicly at this stage, but I may post something in the future. In the meantime, if you are curious about the details, feel free to reach out and I will share what I can.

For Nasittuq, a couple of things. The wage arbitration is still ongoing. We are awaiting the arbitrator’s decision and once we have it, I plan to hold a meeting to answer any questions our members have. Hopefully soon, and hopefully the work everyone put into this gives us something to be happy about. On a more resolved note, we were able to settle the question of per diem payment while on travel status. Nasittuq has agreed that per diems will be paid for the full duration of travel status regardless of length, ending the previous policy of reverting to an NLA after three days.

For Rogers, we are in negotiations now. In parallel I am working to help address the pressure members are facing from increased workload and low staffing levels, compounded by cost controls from head office that appear to be limiting replacement hiring.

We are still working to secure a contract for our members at Hydro-Pontiac, and we have served notice to bargain with CKUA.

If your bargaining agent was not mentioned, please do not read too much into that. I would ask that you reach out if there are issues that need attention.

In Solidarity,

Jeff Wendt Business Manager