Some fear new round of contracting out pending
A weak majority of the six unions who bargain as the Health Sciences Professionals’ Bargaining Assn. voted to ratify a two-year agreement with the Health Employers Assn. of British Columbia on March 2.
Following the British Columbia government’s fiscal mandate, it has no wage increase over the two years.
In order to achieve modest increases to benefits, the agreement trades off that accrual of vacation by one year. Some of these benefit increases include in vision care and paramedicals. Special leave for family illness has been reduced, but the plan has been made more flexible. Previously, the union asserts, it was difficult to access those hours.
A professional development fund of $450,000 has been created and employees will now have seniority across the regional health authority.
A letter of understanding permits the employer to contract out “non-medical” services. Some union members claim that this expression, as defined in the Health and Social Services Delivery Improvement Act (it is not defined in the collective agreement) would allow the health authorities to contract out all services not delivered to inpatients in acute-care hospitals.
One member calls it a “union-busting weapon of mass destruction.”
The longshoremen of the Port of Montreal ratified an agreement last fall after a summer of uncertainty. Management locked out the employees at one point.
The owners’ central issue was reducing costs and staffing to more manageable levels. The agreement is intended to cut 100 jobs through attrition and 50 retirement incentives of $25,000 per year for five years.
The solvency of the pension plan was also an issue, and the employers will contribute 25¢ per hour.
And further on the pension front, another DB plan has been replaced by a DC plan, this time at Ineos Nova in Sarnia.
One of the arbitrations reported this week illustrates the hazards of reintegrating injured employees back into the workplace.
The grievor was required to provide a series of functional abilities forms, and each time the employer insisted it was unable to find any work for him given his restrictions.
