CUPE package best on the table, Marshall tells labour

Newfoundland and Labrador's finance minister formally signed a new wage pact with a union Wednesday, while warning other unionized employees they won't receive much more.

Tom Marshall said the deal with the Canadian Union of Public Employees — which includes wage increases of about 20 per cent over four years, including an eight-per-cent raise in the first year — remains the pattern for bargaining with other unions.

Both the Newfoundland and Labrador Nurses' Union and the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees, though, are asking for significantly more in their next contracts, particularly after almost two decades often filled with concessions and wage freezes.

Marshall indicated Wednesday he is not moved by their arguments.

"The nurses are in conciliation and that process will go forward in the usual manner," Marshall said.

"I'm hopeful that at the end of the day we'll have collective agreements with the nurses and NAPE that are like the CUPE deal."

The nurses union had proposed a new contract that included a 24-per-cent hike over two years in basic salaries, as well as upgrades to the floor and ceiling of the salary scale.

NAPE is still seeking a deal, after union leaders rejected a government offer that centred around a 15-per-cent increase over four years. 

CUPE represents about 4,200 workers in Newfoundland and Labrador's public service.