Manitoba Hydro announced Feb. 3 that it was reducing its executive team by 30 per cent effective immediately and said it has plans to reduce its province-wide workforce by about 900 employees.
“Today’s announcement marks the first step in a process of significant transformation for Manitoba Hydro with changes in our executive leadership team and the realignment of our organizational structure,” said Manitoba Hydro president and CEO Kelvin Shepherd in a press release. “These changes are a necessary first step towards achieving cost reductions within Manitoba Hydro and positioning us to execute on our strategic priorities that we have identified as core to Hydro’s success. As a result, three members of Hydro’s vice president team will be leaving the company.”
Shepherd noted that the Crown corporation had recently negotiated new four-year collective agreements with employees represented by Unifor, the Association of Manitoba Hydro Staff and Supervisory Employees and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
“These agreements, which provide for general wage increase restraints including zero per cent in 2017, combined with ongoing reviews of operating and capital expenditures, are all significant steps towards improving the financial stability of Manitoba Hydro,” said Shepherd.
Chris Mravinec, president of CUPE Local 998, which represents 1,100 clerical and technical employees at Manitoba Hydro, said the union wants further discussions with the Crown corporation.
“Now that Hydro has announced drastic job cuts, it’s not too late to find a better way,” he said in a news release. “We are not satisfied that all steps have been taken by Hydro to protect the energy services we all rely on, and to protect the workers who provide them. CUPE Local 998 members have already made sacrifices on wages and through recent job losses – today’s announcement goes too far.”
Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board chair Sanford Riley said in a Feb. 3 statement that the job cuts were painful but necessary.
“ We recognize that the decision to reduce the ranks of Manitoba Hydro by 900 people will be very painful for those who are affected and we regret this. However, we believe that this is an absolutely necessary first step in the process to revitalize the financial position of Manitoba Hydro and to protect the financial integrity of Manitoba. On their own, these reductions will not be nearly enough to restore Manitoba Hydro’s financial position. Even with these reductions, double digit annual rate increases would be required for at least five years in order to re-establish Manitoba Hydro on a proper financial footing.”
Flin Flon NDP MLA and labour critic Tom Lindsey said cutting 15 per cent of the workforce would put Manitoba Hydro’s long-term future in doubt by making it rely more heavily on contract and out-of-province labour.
“[Premier Brian] Pallister has broken his promise to protect frontline services and to take a balanced approach to the economy,” Lindsey said. “Manitobans should be deeply concerned what other wrongheaded steps Pallister’s hand-picked board has for Hydro.”
