The Post-Secondary Employers’ Association (PSEA) has reached a template agreement at the support staff multi-employer table (MET) under the Economic Stability Mandate.

Nine colleges and institutes and their associated unions participated at the MET. The template covers almost 4,000 members of the B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).

The PSEA and union representatives negotiated common items at the multi-employer table, primarily compensation, to form the template agreement. Bargaining must now be concluded at the local level on local items. More information about the agreements will be available when the individual ratification processes have been completed.

Approximately 200,000 public-sector employees are now covered by tentative or ratified agreements under the Economic Stability Mandate. Overall, this represents about two-thirds of all unionized public-sector employees in B.C.

The government’s Economic Stability Mandate provides public-sector employers the ability to negotiate longer-term agreements within a fixed fiscal envelope, and offers employees an opportunity to participate in the province’s economic growth through the Economic Stability Dividend. Settlements are expected to be unique and to reflect priorities negotiated to ensure labour stability and affordable service delivery throughout B.C.

Quick Facts:

• The new 2014 Economic Stability Mandate applies to all public-sector employers whose collective agreements expired on or after Dec. 31, 2013.
• If the province’s real GDP growth exceeds forecasts over the terms of the agreement, the agreement provides for the sharing of some benefits of that growth with the public-sector employees who work on behalf of British Columbians and help make that growth possible.
• Under this proposal, employees would receive a conditional, incremental wage increase equal to half of any percentage-point gain in real GDP growth above the Economic Forecast Council’s forecast published in the February budget.
• For example, if real GDP growth is one percentage point above forecast real GDP growth, then a 0.5% wage increase would result, beyond whatever wage increase had been negotiated in the contract.

Learn More:

An up-to-date listing of tentative and ratified agreements under the Economic Stability Mandate is available at: http://www.fin.gov.bc.ca/psec/

Media Contacts:

Government Communications and Public Engagement
Jamie Edwardson
Ministry of Finance
250 356-2821

Government Communications and Public Engagement
Stacey McGaghey Jones
Ministry of Advanced Education
250 952-6400