Telus' Labour Battle Heats Up
It looks like the battle over a new collective bargaining agreement between Telus Corp. and its unionized workers could get even nastier after Telus said yesterday it will use limited lock-out measures to jump-start negotiations. It has been 3.5 years since the last collective agreement expired, and negotiations have had more starts and stops than a Model T. Getting a new agreement would be the cherry on Telus CEO Darren Entwistle's strategic sundae given the success of his other corporate plans, which have included the acquisition of ClearNet (now Telus Mobility), a massive reduction in costs and debt and the creation of an Eastern Canadian CLEC. You wonder what Telus is thinking with the limited lock-out plan. Will this just incite the union to ratchet up the battle or deliver a message that a deal needs to be done soon?
