Give Us Time and Information, Before We Ratifiy a New Contract

We, the undersigned members of TWU Local 171 call for adequate time and full information to decide on our contract.

When a TA is reached, we want the union Executive Board to provide paper copies or PDFs of the full texts of the TA to each union member to take home to read; and, we want a waiting period of at least 7 business days before the vote (i.e., between the receipt of copies and the scheduling of the ratification vote); and, if the vote is conducted at the worksite instead of at a union meeting, we want a union meeting for open discussion of the TA before the vote takes place.

Contract changes are critical because they affect our livelihoods and the lives of our families. They are complex because they are legal agreements. Too often, we're asked to make changes without fully understanding them, without being able to read them ourselves.

Management stonewalled for almost two months and we've worked without a contract for more than 7 weeks! The danger now is that they’ll try to force through a contract. Members say “Not this time,” and we have the power!

Lets take time and make sure that we've got a contract we can live with. A contract that makes who we work for, work for us! Management can wait for us, now.

So, when a TA is reached, we want:

1. Copes of TA to each individual union member, for keeps
2. 7 business-days between receipt of TA and ratification vote
3. Union meeting for discussion before vote