Rene Watteel with Ironworkers Local 712 says it’s unlikely the company will hire local workers, “It was us that built BC Place in the first place. We have the capacity. If we don’t keep our members employed, we’re going to lose that capacity.”
He says the fabricating will likely be done in Quebec and Japan, and it means 150 lost jobs.
“We want the BC government and PAVCO to make a commitment to support our local industry and local workers who pay all their taxes here and spend their money in our BC economy – anything else just doesn’t make sense,” Watteel said. “Why would BC taxpayers want to stimulate the economy in another province or country and not right here?”
From the same website.
The IRONWORKERS SHOP LOCAL UNION # 712, has proudly been representing it`s B.C. Ironworker members for more than 50 years. Today, we represent over 2,000 members throughout British Columbia in various manufacturing industries. Our negotiated collective agreements are amongst the best in these industries.
I guess picking up the phone and saying you would be able to do it for the cheaper bid would be out of the question.
Here’s a fun game to play if you are good at math, if you ever cross the border to the States, count the cars with union stickers on them heading down for a deal. Trust me, you’ll need a calculator.
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