Employer’s proposal could red-circle EAs for up to fifteen years
Dear members,
On October 4 you received a memo from the employer stating that it will protect current rates of pay for existing employees until the salary grid determines that you will be entitled to an increase.
This is incorrect. The truth is Educational Assistants will continue at existing rates and the impact of the employer's proposal will exist well beyond this year.
- According to the employer’s proposal, you could be red-circled at your current rate until the new salary grid (with lower wages) catches up.
- Wages increased by 2.5% since your last Collective Agreement which spanned from 2016 to 2020.
- This round your employer has tabled a 0% increase up to 2023
- This means that over a seven-year period, between 2016 and 2023, your wages would only have increased by 2.5%.
- If we were to accept the Board's position, it could take another seven years before members who are red-circled at step 5 receive another wage increase.
- For those red-circled at the highest step there could be no wage increase until 2038.
The employer’s current proposal does not protect current rates, it fixes current rates well beyond this round of negotiations, up to fifteen years. We won't stand by while your employer makes inaccurate claims about the impact of their proposal on you. Our next round of mediation is on November 30 and December 1. We’ll keep you updated on anything that comes out of these meetings.
In the meantime, if you have any questions or feedback, please contact a member of your negotiating team.
AUPE NEGOTIATING TEAM – LIVING WATERS CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
Sarah Cross (Slave Lake)
crissar@hotmail.com
Jane Arndt (Edson)
janearndt75@gmail.com or 780-725-1912 (cell)
Laurie Martinot (Whitecourt)
lmartino@telusplanet.net or 780-706-5857 (cell)
AUPE RESOURCE STAFF
Merryn Edwards Negotiations
m.edwards@aupe.org or 780-952-1951 (cell)
Kate Robinson Negotiations
k.robinson@aupe.org
Scott Drake Organizing
s.drake@aupe.org or 604-417-9166 (cell)
Mimi Williams Communications
m.williams@aupe.org