Darrell Greer
Northern News Services

Rankin Inlet (Oct 12/05) - Kivalliq radio waves are once again buzzing with the voices of local announcers on the CBC network.

The unionized workers had been locked out by the broadcaster for about seven weeks until a deal was struck this past week.

Charlie Panigoniak displays the Inukshuk he built at the CBC station in Rankin Inlet. The stones of Inukshuk represented the weight the locked-out workers carried during the seven week work stoppage. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo

The main stumbling block in the negotiations between the public broadcaster and members of the Canadian Media Guild was the CBC's use of contract workers.

In the deal ratified by guild members, the number of contract employees used by the the CBC will be limited to 9.5 per cent of its permanent staff.

The CBC also gave up its right to hire freelance workers on a fixed-contract basis.

In addition, CBC guild employees who have been on contract for four years can now gain permanent status.

That includes workers in arts and entertainment.

Those workers have been denied the right to permanent status for almost a decade.

Well informed

Charlie Panigoniak is the longest-serving employee at the CBC station in Rankin Inlet and looks at the deal as a victory for the workers.

He said guild reps kept him well informed on the negotiations during the entire work stoppage.

"There were some things going on that, maybe, our local people didn't know about all the time, but they answered every question for us they could," said Panigoniak.

"It was a difficult period for workers who are paying a mortgage and have loans that have to be paid every month.

Extra work

"I didn't take any extra work during the lockout. I kept busy in the afternoons at my cabin and out on the land, so that wasn't too bad."

Panigoniak built a small Inukshuk next to the Rankin station with a little help from his co-workers.

He said, to him, the traditional Inuit monument was a good symbol for what the locked-out workers were going through. "Some of the rocks were heavier than others, just like some people had a harder time than others and some bills were heavier than others.

"Many people talked to me during the lockout, saying they supported the workers and were mad at the CBC because the radio was so dead during the days.

"I told people who said things like that to write a letter to the company because that's the only way the CBC will understand their feelings.

"From what I heard, the people will be happy that we're finally back on the air."