The workers were previously employed by Pennecon Maintenance Services, according to Unifor, who had a collective agreement in place with the union and its workers until 2025.
A contract flip for workers at Vale's nickel processing plant in Long Harbour has put more than 150 jobs in jeopardy, according to the union that represents them.
The workers were previously employed by Pennecon Maintenance Services, according to the Fish, Food & Allied Workers-Unifor union, which had a collective agreement for the workers in place until 2025.
However, Vale retendered their contract to a new contractor, DF Barnes Industrial, earlier this month. The union says the switch has cost employees job security and their benefits, alleging that workers are being asked to return at a 20 per cent pay cut.
"Many employees are going to be taking home tens of thousands of dollars less year over year under what we understand are the new terms and conditions, but even the details on that are all quite a bit foggy," James Farrell, a staff representative for FFAW-Unifor, said Wednesday.
"They have their jobs hanging over their heads currently."
Farrell said the loss of jobs will have an impact on the community, as many of the workers have built a life in the region. He called the move to retender the contract "unethical."
"Vale has touted for years that their people are really their main strength," he said. "They're only interested in the absolute cheapest labour they can find, and they don't really care how they go about getting it."
In a statement sent to CBC News, DF Barnes called the union's claims "categorically false," saying workers haven't been asked to take a pay cut.
"We are actively hiring up to 175 unionized employees from [FFAW-Unifor] Local 585 at an overall comparable compensation package to what that had been paid under the previous contract," the statement said.
"DF Barnes has been working at the Vale Long Harbour site with Local 585 for five years. We have been delivering quality work and this contract is simply a combination of that work with Maintenance Services."
Farrell disputed the claim, saying the wages offered to workers by DF Barnes include holiday and vacation pay — which can make a lower rate seem inflated.
He says the contract flip was able to happen due to a lack of government oversight, created by a loophole in the province's Labour Relations Act that allows successor rights — the principle in which a collective agreement is transferred along with other business documents to a new owner — to be left behind.
The loophole was recently amended in federally regulated sectors such as airports and hospitals, Farrell said, but it's up to the provinces to introduce legislation to remove contract flipping in other sectors.
He and the union are calling on Vale, DF Barnes and the provincial government to explain how the move will benefit people in the province.
"The loophole has been closed in many jurisdictions. In B.C. you can't do it, in the federal scene now you can't do it in airports anymore. This government has turned a blind eye to this issue."
In a statement Thursday, Vale Newfoundland and Labrador said it completed a "comprehensive and transparent" process over 18 months for the Long Harbour maintenance contract. It said local companies were given equal opportunity to participate.
"DF Barnes Industrial was selected as the successful applicant and awarded the new five-year contract. DF Barnes is a unionized employer and is extending offers for continuity of work," the Vale statement said.
With files from On The Go
