Minister Bertram said she thought the issue of Prince Edward Island federal employees having to work on Islander Day should be brought to the federal minister’s attention when she was on a conference call with Minister Ambrose yesterday. Provincial Director of Labour, Roy Doucette, sat in on the call.

“I wanted Minister Ambrose to understand that, when our government instituted Islander Day, it was with the intention that it be a paid holiday for all PEI workers,” said Minister Bertram. “I realize the federal collective agreement is outside of provincial jurisdiction, but I thought the federal labour minister should be aware that this issue has caused some concern in our province.”

Minister Ambrose assured Minister Bertram that she would take the matter under consideration/advisement. They were participating in a conference call in preparation for next week’s annual Federal/Provincial/Territorial (FPT) meeting of Ministers responsible for Labour. Ministers from across Canada will be meeting in Lake Louise, Alberta, January 21-23, 2009. Items on the agenda include a review of Labour Standards in the Canada Labour Code, the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS), Healthy Environments and Consumer Safety, an update on the FPT Strategy on Canada and the International Labour Organization (ILO) and Labour Cooperation Agreements (LCAs), and work-life balance.