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Edward
S. Rogers, O.C
President and Chief Executive Officer
Rogers Communications Inc.
333 Bloor Street East
Toronto, Ontario
M4W 1G9
Dear
Mr. Rogers:
Despite
its best efforts to be fair and reasonable, the London Musicians'
Association (LMA) has been unable to gain voluntary recognition
from Rogers Television, Cable 13 in the form of a basic scale
agreement which would define the minimum terms and conditions
under which our members would provide services to Rogers Television,
Cable 13.
The process
started on October 5, 2000 with a letter
to Rogers Television, Cable 13. We received a written response
on October 29, 2000. Our response
to this letter followed on November 21, 2000.
After
several unsuccessful attempts to gain voluntary recognition,
we requested and received authority
to enter into negotiations on behalf of the American Federation
of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM) on February
5, 2003. A copy of the AFM's Certification Order is included
here.
On
March 6, 2003, the LMA served, in accordance with Section
31 of the Status of the Artist Act, S.C. 1992, c.33, a formal
Notice To Bargain to
Rogers Television, Cable 13. As required under the Act, letters
to confirm this Notice were also sent
to The Canadian Artists and Producers Professional Relations
Tribunal (CAPPRT) and to The Hon. Claudette Bradshaw, Minister
of Labour on March 6, 2003.
Acknowledgment of our Notice was received
on March 21, 2003.
Having
received no acknowledgment from Rogers Television, Cable 13
of our letter of March 6, 2003, we attempted to contact station
manager Scott Jackson via telephone. A message advising him
of his company's obligation to enter into negotiations with
the LMA was left on his answering service April 1, 2003. Mr.
Jackson returned our call and both our parties agreed to have
a first meeting on April 30th, 2003.
Representatives
of Rogers Television, Cable 13 and the LMA met on April 30,
2003 at which time, this document
was presented by the LMA as a suggested proposal.
A telephone
call on May 15, 2003 to Mr. Jackson was placed for the purposes
of soliciting additional feedback to our proposal and with
the intent of establishing a second meeting. During that call,
Mr. Jackson advised that he would be discussing these items
with his fellow managers at their May 2003 meeting. He requested
that we contact him sometime between May 26th and May 28th
2003. The LMA called Mr. Jackson on May 26, 2003 and received
his return call on May 28, 2003. He remained hesitant about
entering into an agreement and requested further time to discuss
the matter with his fellow managers at their next meeting
near the end of June, 2003. Phone messages were left for Mr.
Jackson on June 30, 2003 and July 2, 2003 to request confirmation
of a second negotiation meeting.
Mr. Jackson
contacted the LMA on July 4, 2003 and informed us he had no
further interest in negotiating a scale agreement and that
he would not agree to, or attend any further meetings. Mr.
Jackson was once again reminded that the LMA would not accept
this refusal to bargain in good faith and would continue to
pursue a continuation of this process by all legal means available
at its disposal.
The
LMA sent Mr. Jackson another letter
on July 21st reminding him once again of his company's legal
obligations, and to request a written reply indicating Rogers'
official position in this matter. To date, no aural or written
response has been received. As such, we feel fully justified
in proceeding with the filing of a formal complaint for "Failure
to Bargain in Good Faith" with the Federal government.
This action has been unanimously supported
by the Executive Board of the LMA.
Mr. Rogers;
we believe your immediate personal intervention in this matter
is required to avoid further regrettable and unnecessary action
to resolve this issue.
Sincerely,
On behalf
of the Executive Board,
Paul Sharpe
LMA President
Local 279 AFM
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