Edmonton – As the national rotating strike by ‘blue collar’ federal employees reached its seventh week, pickets were up at Canada Place, the women’s prison, and the maximum security federal prison in Edmonton – as well as at the federal prison in Grande Cache.

The picketers, members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), are attempting to regain wages lost over the past seven years.

"We haven’t had a wage increase since 1992," said Doug Fulfit, strike coordinator for UNDE Locals 903 and 905. "The government legislated zero percent increases for us for the next six years," said Fulfit. "We’ve been without a contract for two years now – this is what happens when the employer gets to change the rules to suit themselves."

The wage gap between federal public employees and private sector workers doing the same jobs can be astronomical. ""I’m a pipefitter," said Ken Hackett, strike captain for UNDE Local 905. "Private sector pipefitters are making $8.00 to $10.00 an hour more than me."

Overall wage levels are only part of the problem, according to Ron Cutler, Executive Vice-President of the national UNDE component. "The other real stumbling block is the government’s refusal to get rid of their regional pay grid," said Cutler. "Some of our members her in Alberta get $4.00 an hour more than people doing the exact same job in Manitoba – and $2.00 an hour less than identical workers in B.C."

Cutler points out that there is a basic pay equity principle at stake here – equal pay for equal work. "How would Members of Parliament react to a regional pay grid that had them each earning different salaries based upon their home ridings?" asked Cutler. "If they won’t, why should we?"

The government has apparently offered the workers 2% and 2.5% increases for the past two years.

Given that offer, it should come as no surprise that no settlement has been reached, according to Alberta Federation of Labour President Audrey Cormack. "The attack on federal public employees has got to stop," said Cormack. "There has been so much wage loss and workload increases that people are leaving the public sector for private employment."

Cormack said that Canadians need and deserve a vital, well-paid and properly staffed public sector.

"The thirty per cent increases handed out to top public sector managers is an insult to all the hard-pressed public employees who are actually doing the work," said Cormack. "It proves that they have the money and that they recognize the problem."