Union workers at the Sudbury, Ont., operations of Falconbridge voted 68% in favor of a new 3-year contract. Ratification came the day before a strike deadline by members of the Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers union; about 82% of the membership voted.
According to the union, the new contract awards total increases (negotiated salary levels and cost of living allowances) of about 26% — 22% in wages and 4% in benefits — over the three years. About 1,600 workers are covered by the labor contract.
Falconbridge spokesman Richard Laine said the new contract is comparable to what workers at Inco Ltd., the larger of the two nickel producers in the Sudbury area, negotiated.
“The negotiations reflected generally the improving dialogue in industrial relations. There was good discussion and problem solving,” Laine said. Falconbridge is owned on a 50/50 basis by Noranda Inc. and Trelleborg AB of Sweden.
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