PETITION - Winnipeg Association Of Non-Teaching Employees (W.A.N.T.E.):
Background Information:
1. There is an inherent imbalance of bargaining power between the employer (Winnipeg
School Division) and the union (W.A.N.T.E.) over the last four (4) years with an expired
contract, since July 1, 2017.
2. Many other bargaining agents representing non-teaching staff in other Manitoba school
divisions have fought back and received strike mandates in order to gain some leverage
at the bargaining table. However, W.A.N.T.E. has not brought a strike vote to our
membership and we suspect that is due to the fact that the Association would not be
able to fund and support our members on the picket line.
3. There is a lack of transparency when it comes to W.A.N.T.E. sharing the status of our
finances and Auditor’s Reports.
4. W.A.N.T.E. falls short in their ability to provide meaningful servicing to their members.
5. W.A.N.T.E. continues to communicate in an unprofessional and often disrespectful
manner to the membership, both in print and at meetings.
6. As per the Winnipeg School Division, there are 1,867 W.A.N.T.E. members. However,
on the W.A.N.T.E. website they have 1,700 members, seemingly unaware of the size of
their own bargaining unit.
7. Seven hundred and seventy eight (778) W.A.N.T.E. members signed a membership
application with the MGEU – a very large percentage of the WANTE membership – who
are unsatisfied with the representation they are currently receiving.
8. A merger between W.A.N.T.E. and the MGEU will not disadvantage the membership. All
benefits and the current Collective Agreement remain in place until a new one is
bargained.
As such, we petition W.A.N.T.E. as follows:
1. For the W.A.N.T.E. Executive to call a general membership meeting in the timeframes set
out ARTICLE XI – Section B of the W.A.N.T.E constitution.
2. For the W.A.N.T.E. Executive to hold a referendum vote at this general meeting for a
proposed union merger between W.A.N.T.E and the MGEU.