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Information going out this month to members across British Columbia in advance of ratification voting to take place in late January and early February.
Vancouver (6 Jan. 2011) - Approximately 17,000 health science professionals across British Columbia will vote in late January and early February on a new tentative agreement reached during the holiday season.
Reid Johnson, president of the Health Sciences Association of B.C. (HSABC/NUPGE), says the proposed settlement was reached despite a tough bargaining climate and it meets the objectives set out at an HSABC bargaining proposal conference in November 2009.
“From the outset, we recognized this was going to be a difficult set of negotiations," Johnson notes.
"Our members are critical members of the modern health care team and government imposed a strict ‘net zero’ bargaining mandate. Government refused to commit any money to address necessary priorities to protect quality health care,” he adds.
“After more than nine months of negotiating, the bargaining committee was able to work within the confines of that mandate to earn improvements in the collective agreement that will serve to improve and enhance the public health care system and those working in it into the future."
Highlights include:
- Enhanced benefits coverage.
- Improved opportunities for professional development.
- A fair and equitable process to protect job security.
- Creation of working groups that lay the foundation for progress on challenges related to disability management, on-call and call-backs.
- A substantive review of classifications with two significant priorities - lifting Grade I to Grade II wage rates and recognizing the value of professional practice leadership.
- Establishment of a high-level joint committee including the ministry of health, health authorities and HSABC members recognizing the value of health professions and involving them in decisions about the health care system.
“In order to achieve these significant long-term improvements, the bargaining association agreed to delay an extra day of vacation accrual by one year," says Jeanne Meyers, chief negotiator of the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA).
"In addition, some cost-saving measures related to the role of chief paramedicals and members working without general supervision have been agreed to. While these measures achieve cost savings, we have protected the integrity of the work of health science professionals and the need for professional leadership from within their specialized areas of work. This was critical for laying a foundation for modernizing our classification system,” Meyers said.
A full information package will be distributed and posted on the HSABC website to members later this month. Information meetings will also be scheduled and work site ratification meetings will be arranged in late January and early February.
The majority of health science professionals in B.C. are represented by the HSABC. Other unions in the bargaining association include B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU/NUPGE), the Professional Employees Association (PEA), the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the Hospital Employees’ Union (HEU).
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The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE