Bargaining update: Progress on non-monetary issues; monetary proposals tabled

Dear BCGEU,

Your Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) committee continues to work hard at the table to deliver renewed collective agreements that reflect your priorities. 

After 29 days of bargaining with the Community Social Services Employers' Association (CSSEA), we've reached agreement on several key non-monetary improvements. These include: 

• Improved language on employer-led investigations and disciplinary meetings 
• Stronger provisions around health and safety including where there are health and safety related workload issues 
• A requirement for the employer to consult employees before permanent transfers 
• Stewards' email addresses to be provided to new employees 
• Changes to the expedited arbitration process 
• A commitment to renegotiate local issues after the renewal of main agreements 

We've also made progress on housekeeping and formatting changes, and updated outdated terms like "residential" to "residence" to better reflect the work and settings of our members. 

Discussions are ongoing on several important items including union meetings at worksites, technological change, harassment and bullying language, and leave provisions for casual employees. 

Monetary proposals

On October 3rd, we tabled our monetary proposals. This allows CSSEA to begin reviewing and costing our proposals during a brief scheduled pause in negotiations. We will resume non-monetary talks later this month and then shift our focus to monetary negotiations. 

In total, 15 more bargaining days (12 at the main table, three for Indigenous Services) are scheduled through the end of November. 

Indigenous Services (IS) bargaining update

The CSSBA and CSSEA Indigenous Services Bargaining Committees met on September 8 for their first joint session. It was a positive and productive start. We finalized and signed the Indigenous Services Gathering Protocols, reviewed joint committee work, and discussed shared priorities.

The next round of Indigenous Services bargaining is scheduled for October 22–24, where we'll begin substantive discussions.

We remain committed to negotiating agreements that improve your working conditions and reflect the essential work you do in communities across B.C. 

Community Bargaining Association (CBA) different from CSSBA

Finally, we wish to clarify that recent news about Community Bargaining Association (CBA) negotiations reaching an impasse and a strike vote being planned does not involve members in the social services sector. Instead, the CBA, in which the BCGEU is also the lead union, represents workers in the community health sector. You will be notified directly if CSSBA negotiations reach an impasse and informed of any subsequent steps.  

In solidarity, 

Your CSSBA Bargaining Committee 

UWU/MoveUP

Dear Friends,

We are gearing up to start negotiating your new collective agreement. Bargaining is set to begin mid-May, and right now, your bargaining committee is in preparation mode, busy creating the proposal package that reflects all unions' identified priorities. 

A collective agreement is a written contract that sets out the terms and conditions of your employment and includes elements such as wages, benefits, working hours, and grievance procedures.

In community social services your collective agreement is the result of bargaining, a process where your union, through the Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) and your employer, represented by the Community Social Services Employers' Association (CSSEA), negotiate a group agreement.

As you may know, our current collective agreement expired on Monday, March 31st. We want to reassure you that the terms of our agreement will stay in effect until a new one is negotiated and ratified. So, it remains business as usual for you and your coworkers. 

Your Bargaining Committee
Andrea Duncan – BCGEU – Chair, CSSBA Bargaining Committee
Pamela Pye – BCGEU – Co-Chair, BCGEU Community Living Services Caucus 
Kari Bepple – BCGEU – Co-Chair, BCGEU General Services Caucus 
John Manthorpe – BCGEU – Co-Chair, BCGEU Indigenous Services Caucus 
Sharon Campbell – BCGEU 
Jessica Daigneault – BCGEU 
April Duffield – BCGEU 
Tammy Lewis – BCGEU 
Michelle Nestoruk – BCGEU 
Angela Reed – BCGEU 
Andrew Stahl – BCGEU 
Ash Vomacka – BCGEU 
Kate Banky – BCGEU 
Wynn Hartfelder – BCGEU 
Sharon Hollingsworth – BCGEU 

Ryan Stewart
Chief Negotiator, CSSBA
Staff Representative, BCGEU Negotiations Department

New Bargaining Website
The BCGEU has developed an info hub for members during Public Sector Bargaining 2025. Check out the Community Social Services bargaining hub here.
 
The website features educational materials such as information about the bargaining process, public service FAQs, a summary of key information this round of bargaining, media coverage, and more.

The website is intended to help members quickly find information and updates about the negotiation of their next agreement and provide members all they need to know about bargaining.

Update your Contact Information 
If you know of anyone who is not receiving BCGEU email updates, please refer them to the BCGEU member portal to sign-up so they can receive bargaining updates. Take a moment to make sure all of your contact information is up to date as well! 

UWU/MoveUP

Revised wage grids for paraprofessional classifications only are now available. Please see the joint Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) / Community Social Services Employers' Association (CSSEA) summary of the changes and the revised 2023 and 2024 wage grids for complete details.
 
CSSBA and CSSEA agreed in the last round on wage adjustments towards parity for CSS paraprofessionals with health science professionals working under the Health Science Processionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) collective agreement. We reported in March of this year that the parties had been unable to reach agreement on HSPBA comparability and that discussions were continuing. The parties subsequently reached agreement that will bring significant increases to CSS paraprofessional classifications, in some cases retroactive to 2023, representing a big step towards parity with the HSPBA.
 
Highlights include:
 
Retroactive to April 2023:

• 3.50% wage increases for paraprofessional classifications in Grid 13-P, 14-P, 15-P, and 16-P.
• 3.79% wage increase for the Step 4 rate for the Speech Language Pathologist Supervisor (Grid 18-P-SLP) classification.
• Layered-over paraprofessional supervisors without an existing benchmark will be paid at a rate of one additional grid or a minimum of 8% above the highest job supervised.

 
Retroactive to April 2024:

• 4.41% wage increase for the Step 4 rate for the Occupational Therapist Supervisor (Grid 17-P-OT) and Physiotherapist Supervisor (Grid 17-P-PT) classifications.
• 4.12% wage increase for the Step 4 rate for the Speech Language Pathologist Supervisor (Grid 18-P-SLP) classification.
• New supervisor benchmarks created for Infant Development Consultant Supervisor (Grid 15-P-IDC) and Supportive Child Development Consultant Supervisor (Grid 15-P-SCDC) classifications, with Step 4 rates matching the top rate of the April 2024 HSPBA wage schedule.

 
While available funding was insufficient to align all CSSEA/CSSBA paraprofessional classifications up to the HSPBA target rates, the classifications that remain below their target rates are 13-P, 14-P and 15-P. We remain proud of the heath sector comparability adjustments achieved in the last round of bargaining and remain committed to fully closing the remaining heath sector wage comparability gaps. We look forward to continuing the fight for equitable wages with and for you.
 
In solidarity,
 
Ryan Stewart
Staff Representative, Negotiations Department
CSSBA Spokesperson

Download PDF of notice here

The parties agreed to the distribution of low wage redress increases for April 1, 2022. Wage grids for April 1, 2022 and the preliminary wage grids for April 1, 2023 are now available.
 
Click here for the joint bulletin from the CSSBA and the CSSEA.
 
The delegated wage grids for Indigenous Services are also available for April 1, 2022 and April 1, 2023. Click here for those wage grids.
 
In solidarity,
 
Your BCGEU Community Social Services Bargaining Committee

March 29, 2023
For immediate release
 

BCGEU community social services workers ratify three-year deal  

BURNABY – The Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) announced today that the 19,000 members of the community social services bargaining unit employed by the Community Social Services Employer's Association (CSSEA) voted 95 per cent to accept the tentative agreement. The B.C. General Employees' Union (BCGEU) is CSSBA's lead union representing over 13,000 members. The agreement was negotiated with eight other unions who represent members in the agreement: CUPE, HEU, HSA, CSWU Local 1611, CLAC, USW 1-417, UFCW and BCNU.

The tentative deal was reached on February 6^th, 2023, after one year of negotiations. The new agreement is retroactive from April 1, 2022 through March 31, 2025 and includes:

• Low-wage redress* increases, retroactive for all employees (past and present) to April 1, 2022
• Wage increases follow the GWI of the public sector agreements
• 100% paid sick leave, effective April 1, 2024
• Improvements to health and welfare benefits, leave provisions, safety and health, layoff and recall, bullying and harassment language.

* Low-wage redress (LWR) refers to funds that are meant to help reduce long-term inequalities in compensation in both community social services and health care sectors.

"This agreement reflects our members' priorities, and the gains made are significant: 100% sick pay, a fair and equitable compensation package, meaningful recognition and reconciliation for Indigenous workers, supports for psychologically safer and healthier workplaces and more," said BCGEU President Stephanie Smith. "This round of bargaining was one of the longest in the history of this sector, and I am proud our bargaining team for what they've achieved for our members."

Community social services workers work in every community in B.C., providing services such as supporting Indigenous families; supporting children and adults with developmental and physical disabilities; supporting women, youth and children fleeing abuse; and providing support for people with mental health challenges and at-risk youth.

The Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) represents unionized workers in the community social services sector, and the Community Social Services Employers Association (CSSEA) represents over 200 community social services employers across the province.

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For more information, contact Holly Reid, Communications, 604-291-9611, [email protected]

UWU/MoveUP

Members in the Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) voted 95% in favour of the tentative agreement reached with the employers represented by the Community Social Services Employer's Association (CSSEA). This includes agreements for workers in the Community Living Services, General Services and Indigenous Services sub-sectors.

This was one of the longest rounds of negotiations in the history of this sector and we thank each member of the bargaining unit who took the time to vote and stayed engaged throughout this process.
 
Low wage redress and general wage increases confirmed

General wage increases retroactive to April 1, 2022 were agreed to and outlined in the tentative agreement. In addition to the general wage increases, we agreed on the distribution of April 1, 2022 low wage redress (LWR) increases effective the first pay period following April 1, 2022. The additional increases include a 2.54% increase that will be applied to all JJEP (non-paraprofessional) jobs and targeted increases to specific paraprofessional jobs. These increases will align the top rate of all community social services classifications with their comparable jobs in the health sector. All JJEP jobs will also receive an additional 1.4% increase at Step 1.

Details of the low wage redress increases, and the wage grids for April 1, 2022 and the preliminary general wage increase of 6.75% at April 1, 2023 will be available soon.

The new agreement covers the term April 1, 2022 (retroactively) through March 31, 2025.

Remember, you can find many more helpful resources – including the wage calculator and the ratification bulletin – on this web page.

In solidarity,

Your BCGEU Community Social Services Bargaining Committee

UWU/MoveUP

Voting continues!

We noticed you haven't voted for your tentative agreement yet. The deadline to get your vote in is 5 p.m. (PDT) on Monday, March 27th. Can you go vote and remind 3 other co-workers to vote today?

Your credentials will have the following sender address: [email protected]. If you have not received your voting credentials, please check your spam or junk folder. 

Your voting credentials will include your unique Elector ID (which is your BCGEU membership number) and a password. These voting credentials are unique to you and can only be used once. Once you have submitted your ballot using your credentials, you will not be able to reuse them. You can cast your ballot using any computer (desktop or laptop), tablet or smart phone. 

Click here for the FAQs about voting, including:

• What do I do if I don't receive my voting credentials?
• How does the vote get counted?
• Will there be scrutineers for the count?

If you haven't received your voting credentials, click here to complete, and submit a form for voting credentials.

If you still have questions about the tentative agreement or the vote, you can email [email protected]

Please post this on your union bulletin board and forward this email to anyone you know who has not been receiving emails on the vote!

This is your agreement and your vote. Make it count!

In solidarity,

Your Community Social Services Bargaining Committee

The community social services tentative agreement that members are currently voting on includes wage protections to adjust the April 1, 2023 wage increases according to the impact of inflation in the previous 12 months.

Based on inflation figures released this week, we can confirm that if the agreement is ratified, members will receive the full 6.75% wage increase starting the first full pay period after April 1, 2023.
This brings the total general wage increases for the first two years of the agreement to well over 10% for most members, on top of additional increases related to low wage redress and wage comparability.
 
The tentative agreement also includes wage protections for the April 1, 2024 wage increases, which would be calculated around this time next year. You can find more information about the wage increases and other improvements in your collective agreement on the ratification page.
 
Voting is open until 5 p.m. PDT on March 27, 2023. If you haven't already cast your ballot, make sure to do so before the deadline. You can find information on the ratification vote here.
 
In solidarity,
 
Your Community Social Services Bargaining Committee

UWU/MoveUP

As promised, here is a document containing the highlights of the tentative agreement. You can also access the full comprehensive report here.

A wage calculator that can show you how your wages would change over the length of this tentative agreement will be available in the coming days. Keep an eye on your inbox as we will inform you as soon as it is available online.

Member education

• In person information sessions are happening in your community. Find out details here. Virtual meetings are also scheduled across the province, for members that are not able to go to a meeting space in person.
• Events for this week are listed at the bottom of this email. There are also changes for meetings next week in Campbell River on March 6 and confirmation of virtual meetings for members in 305, 307, 308 and 309 on March 7. Please check the website for the meetings scheduled for next week, which is the final week before voting begins. 
• You can view the ratification webinar here, in case you missed any of them.
• If you have a question about the tentative agreement or the ratification process, email [email protected].

Voting on the tentative agreement opens at 8 a.m. (PST) on Monday, March 13th and closes at 5 p.m. (PST) on Monday, March 27th. This will be your collective agreement, and the ratification vote is your opportunity to have your say! Make sure you have the information you need to make an informed decision. Information about voting will be shared soon, stay tuned for details.

REMINDER:It is important that your bargaining committee can contact members to communicate important information about the ratification process. Log in to update your contact information here. Please note: If you are adding an address that was previously unsubscribed from BCGEU emails, you must also resubscribe by filling out the form here. 

In solidarity,

Your Community Social Services Bargaining Committee


This week's information sessions:

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1 – IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL

THURSDAY, MARCH 2 – IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL

FRIDAY, MARCH 3 – IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL

Important updates for next week's meetings:

MONDAY, MARCH 6 – IN PERSON MEETINGS IN CAMPBELL RIVER

Meeting location is at the Comfort Inn and Suites – 1351 Shoppers Row
Drop-in times: 12 PM to 3 PM and 5 PM to 8 PM

TUESDAY, MARCH 7 – ZOOM MEETINGS FOR Locals 305, 307 , 308 and 309 (Kamloops, Okanagan, and Kootenays)

There three meeting times: 9 AM, 12 PM and 5 PM
Click here for zoom link.

** We encourage questions to be sent in advance of all Zoom meetings to [email protected]

UWU/MoveUP