I've followed a lot of strike votes over the last five years as a labour reporter. Strike votes matter. They're a sign of resolve, a show of force. In some cases, the threat of a strike is enough to force an employer to negotiate a deal.
In other cases, I've watched unions obtain strike mandates and remain without a contract for months or years without job action.
Many unions view striking as an absolute last resort.
If an employer thinks there's no serious power behind the strike vote,
it won't do much to sway the negotiations. The employer will call the union's bluff and keep an insulting offer on the table.
I've seen union leaders talk big game and take bad offers.
Following the PSAC federal worker negotiations throughout the last year, I have to admit, I did not anticipate what happened this morning.
PSAC workers on strike on Montreal. Photo via Crystal Warner.
PSAC workers on strike in St.John's, Newfoundland. Photo via Jessica McCormack.
Two PSAC bargaining units making up 155,000 federal workers across Canada went on strike today after obtaining
strike mandates on April 7 and April 12. This is one of the largest strikes in Canadian history. There have only been two other national federal sector strikes in the last 30 years, in 1991 and 2004.
