Health employers must be better prepared when Facilities talks resume next week

After two weeks of slow-going negotiations, unions representing 43,000 health care workers say that B.C.’s health employers need to pick up the pace when talks continue next week.

The multi-union Facilities Bargaining Association has held six days of collective bargaining with the Health Employers Association of B.C. since February 7. The FBA has tabled a number of concrete proposals in the areas of health and safety, equity and wellness.

But HEABC has not responded to any of those proposals and has only brought housekeeping and contract administration issues to the table.

BCGEU president Darryl Walker says that health employers and government need to commit themselves to more productive discussions at the bargaining table.

“We are prepared to bargain for a fair and reasonable deal and we ask the employers to provide us with timely responses to our proposals,” says Walker.

The current collective agreement expires on March 31, 2012. The FBA has scheduled bargaining sessions with HEABC into next month.

There are a dozen unions in the FBA representing health care workers in hospitals, residential care facilities, emergency health services, shared services (like supply chain and logistics) and diagnostic and treatment centres. More than 270 job classifications are represented in the talks.

BCGEU represents over 2000 members covered by the facilities agreement.