YOUR MINUTES MATTER – Campaign Support Guide 2019

For 67 years, the General Presidents’ Maintenance Committee for Canada/National Maintenance
Council for Canada (GPMC/NMC) has been negotiating and administering multi-trade agreements for
maintenance work on industrial facilities. These agreements secure employment for thousands of skilled
tradespeople in 13 trades across the country. That adds up to over 28 million hours of maintenance
work and $1.1 billion in wages and benefits every year across 120 different employers.

As we all know, the boom is over. There are less projects, less jobs, and less money to go around. Things
have never been tougher for workers and clients alike.

When everything was going full steam, clients needed all the workers they could get. Things weren’t as
buttoned down. Coming in late, extending breaks, and taking off early wasn’t too big of deal. These
days, slim profit margins have made productivity more important than ever. It’s been estimated that lost
time on tools can cost a single client up to $80,000/day. That’s over $1 million every two weeks.

Clients pay a premium for union workers. Over 85% of us are doing a great job, putting in a full day’s
work, every day. But the impact of the other 15% can’t be ignored. To cut down on costs, some clients
have started hiring non-union workers for jobs that unions used to be able to rely on. We have to act
now to prove the value union workers bring to the table.

The “Your Minutes Matter” campaign is about two things: celebrating the value of skilled union
tradespeople and educating our union workforce about the potential impacts of late starts, long breaks,
and early quits. We want contractors and clients to be confident that union workers are the best labour
supply out there. Ultimately, we want to protect union jobs today—and for years to come.

This fall, keep an eye out for the new Rules of Engagement. Contractors will be making it easy for union
workers to read through and sign the document.

The Rules of Engagement will reinforce your existing employment contract and help prove to clients that
union workers are dedicated to putting in a full day’s work, every day on the job.

This Campaign Support Guide provides you with information and resources to support the ‘Your Minutes
Matter’ campaign, which will add influence and help amplify the message of the campaign.