Copper Mountain mine workers reject union – BiV

An attempt to organize mine workers at the Copper Mountain mine near Princeton, British Columbia has failed.

In a recent vote to form a union under the banner of the United Steelworkers union (USW), local 7619, 315 mine workers cast votes on a proposal to form a union. Only 83 voted in favour of organizing under the USW banner.

Randy Gatzka, one of the organizers for the USW, admitted his union was surprised at the vote and was at a loss to explain why so many miners voted against organizing.

“We were quite taken back by the results,” he said.

James O’Rourke, CEO of Copper Mountain Mining Corp. (TSX:CUM), characterized the organizing attempt as a “raid” by the USW, which managed to sign up 45% of the eligible workforce to hold a vote. But ultimately, 75% of those workers rejected organizing.

“I think we’ve always had a good relationship with our employees, and I think our wage package is competitive,” O’Rourke said.

Read more: http://www.biv.com/article/20140613/BIV0108/140619961/copper-mountain-mine-workers-reject-union