EDMONTON—AUPE members working for Alberta Health Services (AHS) General Support Services (GSS) have reluctantly voted to accept a new collective agreement after years of difficult negotiations.
“This news will come as a relief for many AUPE members,” says union Vice-President Darren Graham, who previously served as Chair of the AHS GSS negotiating team.
“Of course, AUPE members working on the front lines of health care deserve more. However, we felt this was the best agreement we could achieve at this time.”
The union’s negotiating team reached a tentative agreement with AHS on June 29, 2022. The union then engaged the AHS GSS membership—over 32,000 members in total—in the leadup to the Sept. 9 vote deadline.
This new collective agreement addresses many concerns AUPE members raised during negotiations and the voting process. Highlights of the agreement include:
Four-year agreement ending March 31, 2024.
Wages:
- Year 1 - April 1, 2020 – 0.00%
- Year 2 - April 1, 2021– 0.00%
- Year 3 - September 1, 2022 – 1.25%
- Year 4 - April 1, 2023 – 2.0%
- The employer has also offered Lump Sum Payments in recognition of members’ outstanding work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 1% Lump Sum (for 2021)
- $1400 Lump Sum (within 90 days of signing)
Job security:
- AHS will stop contracting out jobs until March 30, 2024.
- AHS dropped proposals on red-circling, rollbacks to shift and weekend differential, and an attempt to hire temporary staff for longer periods of time.
Lamont Health Care Centre has successfully been incorporated into the AUPE AHS GSS collective agreement.
“After challenging negotiations and a crushing pandemic, our members needed a moment to take a breath, recover, and prepare to fight for better,” says Graham. “This agreement provides the stability and security necessary for them to do so.”
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AUPE Vice-President Darren Graham is available for comment after 4:30 p.m.
Please contact Alexander Delorme, AUPE Communications Officer: 780-264-9274 or a.delorme@aupe.org