The provincial government, eager to find long-term labour peace, has signed three more five-year tentative agreements with its employees. The five-year terms are a significant step forward, and suggest that Premier Christy Clark鈥檚 goal of a 10-year deal with teachers might be more achievable than it first appeared.
The new batch of agreements, which run from April 1, 2014, to March 31, 2019, cover about 51,000 employees, represented by six unions. The biggest group, almost 25,000 of them, are members of the sa国际传媒 Government and Service Employees鈥� Union. They work in health care, public safety, social services and other operations.
Another 11,000 work in community social services, including community living and aboriginal services. More than 15,000 are community-health employees such as home-support staff, drug and alcohol counsellors, and mental-health staff.
The deals, which still have to be ratified, call for pay increases in four of the five years and include job protection. The pay increases amount to about one per cent per year. Some people will receive increases to bring them in line with similar jobs in other agreements.
Like the 16,000 health employees who reached a tentative agreement with the government in November, those covered by the latest deals are eligible for the Economic Stability Dividend. If the province鈥檚 gross domestic product rises more than is predicted in official forecasts, the union members get an additional increase.
For instance, if actual growth rises one percentage point more than was predicted, the employees would get an increase of 0.5 per cent. For one who earns $50,000 that translates into $250.
The dividend gives public-sector staff a direct stake in the economic health of the province.
While reading the tea leaves on labour negotiations is a risky pastime, it鈥檚 encouraging to see that the sides were able to reach agreement four months before the current contracts expire. Both the government and the unions deserve kudos for sitting down at the table early.
After years of tight budgets, and more ahead, stability seemed unlikely if union members heard 鈥渮ero鈥� again.
In the last round of negotiations in 2009-10, unions reluctantly agreed to deals with no wage increases, after the province made it clear that the 2008 economic meltdown had savaged sa国际传媒鈥檚 finances. No one expected that forbearance to last.
In 2010, BCGEU president Darryl Walker said: 鈥淒own the road, we need to be able to be [looked after]. Our members need to get a little something out of the pot.鈥�
鈥淒own the road鈥� is this year, and they will get a taste from that pot in the new tentative agreements, although not a big gulp.
That taste is more than public-service managers get. Pay for excluded staff has been frozen for years, while their purchasing power has eroded. While the purse is open, the government should give them a raise.
The unions鈥� acceptance of relatively small increments is an indication the negotiators recognize that hefty public-service pay increases won鈥檛 fly with sa国际传媒 taxpayers in the current climate. Signing a five-year deal instead of a two- or three-year one is a risk for both government and union members, who are committing themselves when few people can predict what will happen in five years.
In five years, we should have a better idea of whether the premier鈥檚 dream of liquefied natural gas is likely to come true. And public service unions can decide whether to come back to the pot with a teaspoon or with a ladle.
In the meantime, the success of this round of negotiations is a hopeful sign that the remaining talks will seal five years of labour peace.
