Grey County council is being accused of creating a double standard when it comes to their salaries and those of paramedics.
Ontario Public Service Employees Union – OPSEU – Local 250 President Tim Sullivan says council voted to give themselves a raise just before Christmas, while Grey County’s paramedics have not received a raise in two years.
Sullivan says the problem is that the union is using the same reasoning for the raise as council did – but is seeing a very different result.
He says council argued they needed to bring their salaries in line with those in neighbouring municipalities, and that’s all the paramedics want as well.
Sullivan says paramedics in Grey County are paid about 13 per cent less than those in Bruce and Wellington Counties.
Sullivan says they’ve been trying to bargain with Council for a raise since 2007, but are now being forced into an arbitration process.
Sullivan is expecting arbitration will come out in the union’s favour – and so he says they will also argue that the County should pay interest on the increase eventually awarded.
The arbitration process begins February 12th – Sullivan says it could take anywhere from three to six months.
There are about 59 full time and 52 part time paramedics in Grey County.
