Border Officers Feel Feds’ Bite

(Corey Larocque — Niagara Falls Review)

Cap on wage hikes covers this year, next two

Niagara’s border officers will feel the pinch as Ottawa tightens its belt by capping wage increases for federal public servants.

New legislation will limit increases to 1.5 per cent a year over this year and for the next two, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said in Thursday’s economic and fiscal statement. Border officers learned last week the government was imposing the restraints.

“We pretty well had a gun to our head, so we had no choice,” said Fred Milligan, president of the Customs and Immigration Union local that represents 375 workers in Niagara Falls. There are about 200 workers in a different local in Fort Erie.

“It’s kind of hard to take. At the same time, we realize there are people out there who are losing their jobs,” Milligan said. “It seems every time something happens, we have to take the brunt of what’s going on.”

Union representatives learned last week of the government’s plan to limit raises in response to the global economic crisis.

“It would apply to all federal public servants,” said Niagara Falls MP Rob Nicholson, the Conservative justice minister. Read the rest here.