Workers at a pair of child and family services agencies will return to work following two weeks on strike after employers agreed to voluntary arbitration.
On Monday, the Manitoba Government and General Employees Union (MGEU) announced that bargaining committees have reached an agreement to resolve contract negotiation through interest arbitration.
More than 330 workers with Michif Child and Family Services and Métis Child, Family and Community Services will head back to work on Tuesday.
“This is an important step forward in our efforts to achieve wage parity for CFS members,” said MGEU president Kyle Ross in a news release.
“These workers should get the same pay as their counterparts in the Civil Service, and we will continue to advocate for that outcome in arbitration.”
MGEU noted that since the province agreed voluntarily to arbitration, the union will withdraw the application it made to the Manitoba Labour Board to request an arbitrator.
The province and MGEU will meet for an arbitration hearing on April 22. The arbitrator has agreed to deliver a ruling within four weeks of the hearing.
The CFS workers have been on strike since March 25 and without a contract since January 2023.
