A strike mandate vote sends a strong signal to the Employer (and in our case the mediator) that the members support YUFA’s Bargaining Team and their firm stance on our key priority issues. A strike vote is a negotiating tool to put the maximum pressure on the Employer to come to a fair and equitable settlement with the union. It signals that the membership is willing to engage in actions to win a collective agreement with terms that meet our needs and interests.

A strike vote is necessary even during a lockout to preserve YUFA's ability to resist the Employer's impositions of unfair terms and conditions of work. Once in a legal lockout position, the employer can simply impose new terms without locking out the workers at all. The workers just then come to work under the new terms. If a successful strike vote has not been taken then the workers cannot strike in response to this move by the employer.