PEIAfter more than 100 days on the picket line, Charlottetown’s water and sewer workers are returning to work.City council votes to accept collective agreementTony Davis · CBC News · Posted: Nov 13, 2025 6:03 AM EST | Last Updated: 4 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Charlottetown’s city council voted 6-0 to approve a new collective agreement negotiated between CUPE Local 830 and the city’s bargaining team. (Tony Davis/CBC)After more than 100 days on the picket line, Charlottetown’s water and sewer workers are returning to work.Charlottetown’s city council voted 6-0 at its regular meeting Wednesday night to accept a new collective agreement negotiated between CUPE Local 830 and the city’s bargaining team.Councillors John McAleer, Mitchell Tweel and Terry Bernard were not at the meeting. Coun. Trevor MacKinnon was in conflict and didn’t vote.“It feels really good, not only for myself, but for council, for the citizens of Charlottetown and the union, CUPE Local 830. This has been a long strike,” says Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown, adding he hopes the transition back to work goes smoothly for those who were off the job.“I made it quite clear that, you know, we have to make sure our human resources team is on the ground to provide any kind of assistance.”The new contract is backdated to Jan. 1, 2023, and includes a two per cent raise every year up to the end of 2026, along with back pay and a cost-of-living allowance, says Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown. (Tony Davis/CBC)Members of CUPE Local 830 first walked off the job in July to fight for a new collective agreement with the city.Negotiations were tense, with union members taking various actions to get the attention of the public and city hall. Council meetings were disrupted multiple times with loud music, horns and chanting. At one point, a giant inflatable rat with a scab was set up outside city hall, and union members used a scissor lift to raise themselves up to the council chamber windows to demonstrate.Last month, union members had an outburst at a council meeting, which resulted in some of them being banned from city hall for a period of time. With the new agreement now signed, those bans have been lifted.CUPE Local 830 President Robbie Howatt said members had already voted to accept the deal, and council’s approval was the final step. Workers will return to the job on Thursday, he said.CUPE Local 830 President Robbie Howatt, one of five members previously banned from city hall, will return to work Thursday morning as the ban is lifted. (Connor Lamont/CBC)Union members had been striking over wages and concerns about required certifications, which meant some employees had to pass a specific test within a certain timeframe to continue their work.“We will be looking at the certification process. Instead of 12 months, it’s going to be going up to 28 months. I think there’s goals that we can all work together [on] that are in that agreement.”The new contract is backdated to Jan. 1, 2023 and includes a two per cent raise every year up to the end of 2026. It also includes backpay and a cost-of-living allowance, Brown said. “It’s an eight per cent increase over four years,” Brown said.New positionsCouncil also voted to create three new positions in the water and sewer department: a utility foreman, field supervisor and GIS co-ordinator.“These are just added positions and there will be no loss of jobs. The new positions will come from existing staff that are in place, and then we’ll be able to move up part-time employees to full-time employees,” Brown said.During the strike, CUPE members said the city was giving work that should have been the job of water and sewer workers to private companies.WATCH | Charlottetown hiring private contractors amid water and sewer workers strike:Charlottetown hiring private contractors amid water and sewer workers strikeThe City of Charlottetown is hiring contractors to do the work of striking water and sewer employees. The workers walked off the job over two months ago, demanding better job security and wages. As CBC’s Connor Lamont reports, the union says a deal could still be far off.Brown said the total cost of that work has not yet been tallied.“I’m not aware of the cost, but there were issues where a pipe… had required repairs… that had to be done because we had to keep the taps going. We had to keep the toilets flushing,” he said.“So yes, it interfered with the strike process, but as a city council, as a city operation, we had to ensure that our water resources were being delivered to our customers.”Water and sewer bills were also deferred during the strike.“There will be no interest tied to those outstanding bills with this resolution,” Brown said.While negotiations and a new agreement have been finalized, it might not be long before talks begin again. The latest contract expires on Dec. 31, 2026.ABOUT THE AUTHORTony Davis is a video journalist with a focus on municipal government, housing and addiction for CBC Prince Edward Island. He produces content for radio, digital and television. He grew up on P.E.I. and studied journalism at Holland College. You can email story ideas to anthony.davis@cbc.ca.
Charlottetown water and sewer workers back on the job after 100+ days of striking
