NS Highway workers calling on Liberals to continue public paving operations
Posted Nov 15, 2013 10:41:20 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Nova Scotia Highway Workers Union is calling on the provincial government to take a sober second look at keeping the provinces paving operations.
The union held a picket Friday on the steps of the Premier’s Middleton office.
CUPE National Spokesperson Peter Baxter is calling on the Liberal Government to not sell the paving plant and to look at the positive impacts the operation has on the province.
He said private companies aren’t interested in contracts in remote pockets of the province, so a huge chunk goes without paving for years.
He said paving costs more in remote areas because companies have to bring in all the equipment.
“The provincial plant was able to fill that gap, and since it came into operation, it also significantly impacted the price of asphalt because there was a little bit of competition there,” said Baxter.
He added the ideology that the public sector shouldn’t be competing with the private sector is not a good enough reason to scrap the program.
