labour negotiations loom large for b.c. government
vaughn palmer: some 182 contracts covering 400,000 unionized public-sector workers expire in 2025. unions are preparing their demands.
4 minute read
we apologize, but this video has failed to load.
try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
victoria — a grateful premier david eby thanked b.c. unions this week for helping the ndp to secure a narrow victory in the provincial election. “it was your members that were out there hustling on the doorsteps throughout the campaign,” the newly re-elected premier told a cheering crowd of delegates at the b.c. federation of labour’s annual convention.
“that’s why i am standing here. … thank you, thank you, thank you.”
still, the real test of the premier’s gratitude will come next year at the bargaining table.
some 182 contracts covering 400,000 unionized public sector workers expire in 2025. many of those unions are preparing their demands for the bargaining round that begins in the new year.
the b.c. general employees’ union (bcgeu), representing more than 30,000 employees of central government and its ministries, has already surveyed its members and settled on the top priorities.
“together we identified meaningful wage increases and improvements to benefits as the top issues,” said the bargaining committee in a bulletin distributed to members this week.
the dozen or so members of the bargaining committee, led by union president paul finch, will meet this coming weekend “to begin the heavy lifting on proposal preparation, ultimately finalizing the proposal package in mid-january.”
advertisement
the geu contract and most others in the public sector expire march 31.
those in the k-12 school system are tied to the june 30 end-of-school year.
the hospital employees’ union recently held a conference to set priorities and elect a bargaining committee to represent almost 50,000 members working in health care facilities.
earlier, the guardian, the heu newsletter reminded members of the union’s role in electing the ndp.
“in 2017 and 2020, we elected an ndp government who had long committed to reverse privatization and reinvest in health care,” wrote lynn bueckert, union secretary business manager.
“and from this incredible win at the ballot box, heu’s relationship with the b.c. ndp helped us build a stronger public health care system with more rights for workers. but there is much more to do.”
the union endorsed the ndp and mounted an advertising campaign in support of re-election.
the b.c. nurses’ union also campaigned for the ndp, praising the government adoption of nurse-to-patient staffing ratios for the first time in the country’s health care system.
union president adriane gear recently noted that nurses had “made some substantial gains in our last round of bargaining,” on wages, recruitment incentives and nurse-patient ratios.
advertisement
she suggested that next year’s bargaining will seek improvements in workplace safety, protection against exposure to illicit substances, and an end to nurses being shuttled between facilities as a stop-gap to emergency room closures.
the safety concern was reinforced earlier this month by a knife attack at vancouver general hospital. a student nurse suffered serious stab wounds at the hands of a patient, who was subsequently detained under the mental health act.
on the government side, the new democrats are still picking themselves up from the floor after almost losing their majority in the election.
the premier only got around to convening the first meeting of his new cabinet wednesday. he admitted to reporters that the government won’t be ready to face the legislature until feb. 18, four months after the election.
he also confirmed that british columbians should not expect early delivery of the $1,000 cost of living rebate promised in the ndp election platform.
the estimated $1.8 billion payout needs legislative approval. with the unready new democrats having abandoned plans for a fall session, the first opportunity is when the house sits in february.
the bill should pass. opposition leader john rustad said he won’t block financial relief for british columbians from the cost of living. but it may be spring before the cheques go out the door.
advertisement
given the ndp’s slow-motion response to its biggest election promise, i doubt the new democrats are close to setting a mandate for government negotiators in next year’s talks.
in the last round of bargaining, which straddled the pandemic and a surge in the rate of inflation, the new democrats granted increases of about 14 per cent over three years. (one per cent costs about $400 million a year.)
this time inflation has cooled, the budget is deeply in the red, the private sector is faltering, and the premier barely escaped the election with his majority intact.
on that basis, the new democrats are hoping the unions will curb their expectations in the coming bargaining round.
the unions may have other ideas, judging from this week’s bcgeu bargaining bulletin.
“it is important to note that tens of thousands of other bcgeu members who work in five other public sectors across british columbia will also be negotiating new collective agreements in 2025,” it read in part.
“because all six agreements are negotiated with essentially the same employer — the b.c. provincial government — our union is taking a coordinated strategic approach to ensure our employer knows we are aware of our collective power and are prepared to use it if needed.”
advertisement
just in case sympathy-seeking new democrats thought the bcgeu would be a pushover this time.
share story
