Bargaining Committees Recommend Members Ratify Three GSS Agreements

AUPE’s three health care General Support Service bargaining committees are recommending that members ratify new collective agreements recommended Sept. 12 by Mediator David Jones. The union bargaining teams went through the mediator’s recommended terms of settlement in detail over the weekend and concluded that the 18,000 GSS members covered by the three agreements should support the proposals. “The recommendations by the mediator address most of our members’ concerns that were raised at all three tables,” said AUPE President Doug Knight. “The reports form the basis of a solid three-year agreement that AUPE’s members will be able to support,” agreed Staff Negotiator John Wevers, who led negotiations with the Calgary Health Region. “In addition to significant pay increases that reflect the economic factors impacting all our GSS members, the mediator’s report includes significant market adjustments for many classes of workers whose pay and benefits have fallen behind counterparts in the private sector,” said Staff Negotiator Malcolm McNaughton. McNaughton led both the Capital Health Bargaining Committee and the Multi-Employer GSS Agreement negotiating team, which bargains for employees of the Aspen, David Thompson, East Central and Peace Country health regions. All three proposed agreements – full copies of which are available at the bottom of this update – have several important provisions in common: - Three-year term - Pay increases of 5 per cent in each year of the agreement - Increases in on-call duty pay premiums to $3 per hour on regular work days and $4.25 per hour on named holidays. - Improvements in evening, night and weekend shift differential pay to $2.25, $3 and $2.25 per hour respectively - Improvements in vacation entitlements - New Health Spending Account effective Jan. 1, 2009 In addition, all agreements include significant market increases for a wide range of job classifications and address issues raised by members related to local conditions. All affected members will have complete information packages mailed to their homes as soon as possible. McNaughton said he expects mail-in ballots to be returned and counted by mid-October. Members should watch this Website for the deadline for returning mail-in ballots and the precise day ballots will be counted. Information on how to get a voting package will also be provided for members who do not receive their ballots and background materials by mail in a timely fashion. In spite of the province’s recent announcement that it plans to amalgamate all Alberta health regions into a single “super board,” bargaining must be carried out between AUPE and various health regions until each region ceases to exist as a legal entity on April 1, 2009.