At the beginning of October the membership voted 99.5 percent for strike action. At that point the company was attempting to impose a seven-day operation and other concessions, while offering 2.5 percent, 1.5 percent, and 1.5 percent wage raises over three years. An important concern of union members was the wide pay gap between starting- and top-level mechanics and the fact that there are more than 70 categories of workers with multitiered wage structures that divide the membership. The members had unanimously adopted the demand for across-the-board increases of Can$1.50 and Can$1.00 (Can$1=US$0.68) over two years rather than percentage increases, which widen the gap.

A starting mechanic's rate was Can$11.43 per hour, compared to the top rate of Can$21.69. The company's final wage offer amounted to an 11 percent increase at the top pay scale and an 8 percent increase at the bottom.

Union members at Avcorp circulated articles on the contract fights at Boeing in Seattle (in August and September) and at Rolls-Royce in Montreal. Inspired by job actions that Machinists' union members organized at these workplaces in face of similar concessions proposals, workers at Avcorp organized synchronized riveting and hammering on the hour, distributed "No to 7 Day" and "No to O.T." (overtime) buttons, boycotted overtime, and organized a march through the corporate offices and a rally outside the windows of the company's CEO. For several days union members refused to wear company coats and coveralls. Through actions like these and determination by the membership, the company's seven-day concession proposal was beaten back.

Workers expressed a wide range of views on the contract, in which the final wage offer was unchanged.

"We should have done what the Quebec nurses did and went on strike. We could have fought for more," commented Ajay Gallacher, who has been at Avcorp for seven months.

"The lower paid workers are left further behind. The starting wages are too low for manufacturing," said Eric Pariseau, a Learner Mechanic from Quebec with eight months in the plant.

"The offer was not bad for me but I voted against because it wasn't enough for the low paid majority," added mechanic Damien Surr.

"I voted yes," said mechanic Oscar Chung. "I didn't think it was worth going on strike for a few more pennies. But I agree the gap is too high between the top and low mechanics. I think the Learner Mechanic category should be eliminated."

"I think that this is the best contract we've ever had," said 13-year mechanic David Grove-Bolmeer. "It's right that more money was given to people who had sacrificed the 6 percent wage rollback in 1993." Workers at Avcorp accepted a 6 percent wage cut that year. Many workers who were with the company at that time and voted for the contract still feel that they have fallen behind the cost of living, even though the 6 percent cut was restored.

"I don't agree how the Negotiating Committee went back on their word on fighting to bring up the low paid workers," said four-year mechanic Cindy Reynolds. "We could have fought for more." Financial statements reveal that the company has more than $340 million in back orders and the day after the agreement was ratified an announcement was made by management that they were getting a $4 million loan from the provincial government.

The union negotiators "accepted the company's story that there was no more money without studying the books. I feel we were coerced into voting for the agreement by creating the impression that the company would not survive a strike," stated Learner mechanic Yvonne MacDonald.

Although the increase in wage gap has opened the door to further attacks by the company, the job actions organized by union members to fight for a better contract strengthened the union. Mechanic Rod Hinz-Vanderbeek said, "I've never seen such solidarity in the plant" as in the weeks leading up to the contract vote.

Ned Dmytryshyn and Vuk Krcmar-Grkvac are members of IAM Local 11 at Avcorp.  
 
 
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