Click here for info on Bargaining 2025

Public Sector Bargaining 2025/2026

Select your sector for bargaining updates, FAQs, your bargaining committee, and other resources related to bargaining:

Public
Service
(Components 1, 5, 6, 12, 20) Community
Health
(Component 8) Community Social Services
(Component 3) Health
Facilities
(Component 4) Health Science Professionals
(Component 4) Post-Secondary
(Component 7)

Welcome to our Public Service bargaining hub!

The following information is for BCGEU members who work directly for particular B.C. government ministry or crown corporation - see all here.


Latest: After nine months of negotiations, eight weeks of job action and eight days of mediation, we have a new collective agreement and have resumed work.

Our new agreement

On November 13, 2025, BCGEU members who work directly for the BC Public Service voted in favour of ratifying the tentative agreement reached with the provincial government.

The new agreement takes effect immediately with some items retroactively applied to April 1, 2025, and will soon be available on the BCGEU collective agreement directory and on your page of the BCGEU Member Portal.

For now, visit https://www.bcgeu.ca/ps_ratification to review contents of the Main and component agreements, our return-to-work agreement, FAQs about the agreements, and a wage calculator.

What happens now

Now that we have an agreement, we can enjoy the benefits of our hard work.

All increases in the new agreement took effect on the date of ratification (November 13, 2025) unless otherwise specified – for example, wage increases are retroactive to the start of the agreement’s term (April 1, 2025).

Bargaining a new collective agreement always begins and ends with members, our ideas and our vote. It’s important we continue to talk with each other about bargaining and the wages and working conditions we deserve.

Our bargaining committee’s work also continues after ratification. They are working to ensure the commitments made in this agreement are implemented effectively and that members’ voices continue to guide the path forward.

How we got to the new agreement

• The current collective agreement for BCGEU members working for the BC Public Service expired March 31, 2025.
• Negotiations with our employer, the Public Service Agency (PSA), began on January 22, 2025, and reached impasse on July 18, 2025.
• On August 25, 2025, BCGEU members working for the BC Public Service voted 92.7% in favour of strike action if necessary.
• On the afternoon of August 29, the BCGEU filed 72-hour notice to proceed with a strike.
• Strike action began Tuesday, September 2, 2025, and escalated consistently until sharply intensifying on Monday, September 22.
• On September 25, the employer invited us back to the table and negotiations resumed and immediately broke down September 29.
• Strike action escalated again following the breakdown.
• On October 1 and October 6, thousands of BCGEU members and supporters marched through the streets of Vancouver and Victoria to rally and call on government to respect and fairly pay the workers who keep this province running.
• On October 16, the BCGEU agreed to enter non-binding mediation with the Government of British Columbia, with respected mediators Vince Ready and Amanda Rogers facilitating the process.
• On October 26, a tentative agreement and return-to-work agreement was reached.
• Ratification voting took place November 6-13. Of all eligible members, 79% voted and 89.3% of those voted to ratify the agreement.

Report

In support of our demands, our union released the report, B.C.’s public service: An investment in public safety and a healthy economy, link here, demonstrating how investing in public sector workers is both necessary and economically feasible.


Remember: When public sector workers fight together, everyone's standard of living rises.

Learn more about how bargaining works in this explainer video: https://youtu.be/BPYmJaJn6ow

Quick links

Learn about fellow BCGEU members working in B.C.'s public sector:

Karin Laderoute

Karin Laderoute

Early Childhood Educator (Local 303, Community Social Services)

Karin’s worksite is a child care centre providing children of all abilities with the opportunity to learn, grow and develop in a safe, inclusive environment.

“ECE workers across the province are still facing low professional status, and with that comes low wages. Unfortunately, at this point, there isn’t much that is drawing the next generation into the field.”

Erlinda Bailio

Erlinda Bailio

Care Aide (Local 404, Health Facilities)

Erlinda is a care aide at a complex care facility for seniors in Surrey and has been a BCGEU member for 31 years. Erlinda finds her work rewarding and deeply meaningful — she was raised by her grandmother.

“I came to Canada when I was 24 and we never thought of having rights as an employee. Being a union member is like we’re family. I have people behind me backing me up.”

Brad Jannaway

Brad Jannaway

Heavy Mechanical Instructor (Local 702, Post-Secondary)

Brad is a heavy mechanical instructor at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo, and has been teaching for seven years. He finds teaching at all levels of the apprenticeship program to be very rewarding.

“I personally continue to grow and learn about new systems being added to our education programs, which I appreciate.”

Brad is also a worksite steward and the bargaining unit chair for vocational instructors at his worksite. To him, being part of a union means career stability and support.

“Our collective agreement gives me a good understanding of my obligations to my employer, as well as the rights and benefits my employer is accountable to provide me with in return. Being part of a union means promoting a fair and equitable workplace.”

Danny Munro

Danny Munro

Assistant Manager (Local 510/511, Public Service)

Danny is an assistant manager at the BC Cannabis store in Prince George and has been a BCGEU member for five years. He is proud to follow in the footsteps of his father, who was also a Component 5 member for 35 years and a local chairperson.

As chairperson of his local, Danny encourages members who work for the public service to attend meetings and engage in the bargaining process this year.

“This is a really important time to have your voices heard, and it’s a time where we can actually try and make some change with the employer.”

Mehdi Salem

Mehdi Salem

Correctional Officer (Local 105, Public Service)

Mehdi has been a provincial correctional officer for 28 years. During this time he has seen periods of severe funding cuts, closures and overcrowding. He has also participated in campaigns to restore the resources he and his coworkers need, all with the support of his union.

“The union is only as good as its members. If we have unity and solidarity, in the toughest times, it is the spirit of friendship, togetherness and hope that lives on.”