Dear AUT members:
The 7:30 picket shift is now suspended in order to assess the safety of roads and the picket sites, and to give town and county engineers an opportunity to clean the mess from the roads. We expect heavy rain in the morning, following snowfall, then a return to snowfall by the afternoon, and winds. We will continue to monitor the situation throughout the day. Please see the weather advisory below.
We ask that 7:30 picket teams and drivers report in for 9:30 to supplement the 10:30 shift, if possible. We expect absences from the lines and the driving team due to travel difficulties. If members cannot make it in, they will still receive strike pay for the day.
The HQ will open by 8 am with whatever staff we can muster. We will have shelter vans available to picketers.
Kitchen teams will begin picket line deliveries starting with the 10:00 am shift.
Instructions for striking AUT members
1. Please check your emails Monday; we will keep you updated on weather conditions and strike activity. The 7:30 picket shift, including drivers is now suspended. The 7:30 picket teams and drivers should, if possible,report in at 9:30 for the 10:00 shift in order to fill anticipated absences resulting from poor road conditions for those traveling from outside Antigonish.
2. Depending on the conditions, we will attempt to maintain a presence at picket sites from the 10:00 shift onwards from, the HQ from 8:00 am onward and the kitchen, even if it is reduced. But we will not send members into unsafe conditions.
3. For members who must travel in to Antigonish, DO NOT attempt to drive if road conditions are unsafe. Please advise your picket captains or team coordinators (drivers, kitchen, HQ staff) ASAP if you cannot make it in. You can also call the HQ at 735-3031.
4. If you can make it to HQ safely, please report for your regular shifts from 9:30 onwards; if we cannot send you out, we will conduct de-briefings for all teams at the HQ.
5. If conditions become too severe, we will suspend all strike activity until Tuesday.
6. Please use your common sense in determining whether conditions are too dangerous. No members will lose strike pay for weather-related cancellations on Monday.
Weather Warning:
Antigonish County
5:03 PM AST Sunday 03 February 2013
Rainfall warning for
Antigonish County continuedRainfall amounts of 25 millimetres are expected tonight and Monday morning.
A low pressure system will develop south of Nova Scotia tonight and intensify as it passes east of Cape Breton and then over the Eastern Gulf of St. Lawrence on Monday. Over Eastern Nova Scotia and Cape Breton the snow will change to freezing rain and then to rain tonight. The rain will change back to flurries as very strong northwesterlies develop and colder temperatures return. Blizzard conditions can be expected Monday afternoon and evening in the Cape Breton Highlands.
Winds will be especially strong along the west coast of Cape Breton with gusts likely exceeding 100 km/h. These winds will also generate pounding surf on Monday.
Antigonish County
5:03 PM AST Sunday 03 February 2013
Snowfall warning for
Antigonish County continuedAdditional snowfall amounts of 15 centimetres of snow tonight.
A low pressure system will develop south of Nova Scotia tonight and intensify as it passes east of Cape Breton and then over the Eastern Gulf of St. Lawrence on Monday. Over Eastern Nova Scotia and Cape Breton the snow will change to freezing rain and then to rain tonight. The rain will change back to flurries as very strong northwesterlies develop and colder temperatures return. Blizzard conditions can be expected Monday afternoon and evening in the Cape Breton Highlands.
Winds will be especially strong along the west coast of Cape Breton with gusts likely exceeding 100 km/h. These winds will also generate pounding surf on Monday.