Provincial police confirm they’re investigating an incident on the CUPE picket line in Cochrane on Wednesday.
Members of the striking municipal workers union allege they were targeted by the operator of a road grader that rammed their line near the Commando Pavilion. Their president, Lyne Nolet remarks.
“Just rammed into the picketers and he actually almost hit a little girl and two of the picketers were hit by the grader,” she says, adding that it was the grader’s tires that hit the adults. Their injuries are not serious.
Nolet acknowledges that the grader operator might have been upset with signs on the line calling people like himself “scabs”. She says it’s an acceptable term.
“And if you choose to do work form other employees that are on strike,” she states,” it is the name that you call it. It’s not a nice name, but it’s a choice that you’ve made.”
Town council has invoked the section of the sign bylaw dealing with hate speech, and ordered the scab signs removed. Mayor Peter Politis calls the “scab” label antagonizing.
“This whole approach of making people angry,” the mayor comments,“while we respect that it’s the right of CUPE to address this the way they want, we continue to politely suggest this is the wrong approach.”
“There’s no need for those kinds of signs being on the busiest street in the municipality, and no need to have our children out there as well too, that are associated to that kind of language as well.”
Politis adds that the union should concentrate on getting back to the table and respectfully negotiating a contract. He says he’s awaiting a phone call from the union to set that into motion.