Greater than 70 staff at Garrison Petawawa are out of labor after their non-public firm gave up the federal government cleansing contracts there.
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Greater than 70 staff at Canadian Forces Base Petawawa are with out jobs after the corporate they labored for voluntarily gave up the federal government cleansing contracts it had on the navy set up.
Toure Cleansing Providers requested that its two contracts at Canadian Forces Base Petawawa be terminated, Nationwide Defence stated in an e mail to this newspaper.
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Which means 67 union members and different non-union workers are with out jobs, stated June Winger, nationwide president of the Union of Nationwide Defence Staff. About 75 staff are affected.
The employees, who acquired barely greater than minimal hourly wage, stopped receiving their pay in mid-January, she added.
“It’s shameful,” Winger stated. “They don’t have nest eggs to depend on. They’re residing paycheque to paycheque. Nationwide Defence ought to do higher.”
The positions had beforehand been full-time public-service jobs, however that modified when the federal authorities turned to the non-public sector to deal with such cleansing contracts.
Winger stated there had been ongoing points with employees receiving their pay since Toure was awarded the contract in the summertime of 2022. The agency was additionally having issue offering cleansing provides so workers may clear buildings on the base, she added.
Toure Cleansing, which seems to function from a home in Ajax, Ont., didn’t reply to requests for remark from this newspaper.
The corporate’s Google Opinions website is crammed with complaints from people claiming they have been the agency’s staff and stating they haven’t been paid their salaries.
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Winger stated Nationwide Defence and Public Providers and Procurement Canada had a accountability to the employees, navy workers and the Petawawa neighborhood to look at the backgrounds of the companies they supply contracts to.
Nationwide Defence confirmed the agency’s cleansing contracts at CFB Petawawa had been terminated.
“Lately, Toure Cleansing Providers Ltd. requested termination of their two Janitorial Providers contracts at CFB Petawawa. PSPC and the corporate subsequently terminated the 2 contracts by mutual consent,” Nationwide Defence spokesperson Andrée-Anne Poulin wrote in an e mail.
No different navy bases in Ontario have been affected, she added.
“The corporate that held the third janitorial service contract at CFB Petawawa, Dexterra Group, is now cleansing the buildings that have been beforehand cleaned by Toure Cleansing Providers Ltd. till a brand new contract is awarded,” Poulin wrote.
Nationwide Defence didn’t touch upon the workers being with out pay or advantages. It didn’t present any particulars on when a brand new contract could be awarded.
It was unclear why the contracts have been awarded to Toure Cleansing within the first place.
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Winger stated it was time for Nationwide Defence to carry the workers at Petawawa again into the general public service. She famous that cleaners at another navy bases have been nonetheless public servants and there had been no issues with the providers they supplied.
Winger stated union members who had labored for Toure Cleansing have been nonetheless at midnight on what would occur sooner or later.
“They’ve been informed simply to go house,” she stated.
David Pugliese is an award-winning journalist overlaying Canadian Forces and navy points in Canada. To help his work, together with unique content material for subscribers solely, enroll right here: ottawacitizen.com/subscribe
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