Health Science Professionals Bargaining Updates


November 21, 2022

HSPBA - Tentative agreement reached for Health Science Professionals - BC Gen...

B.C.'s 22,000 specialized health professionals working in hospitals and communities around the province reached a tentative agreement on the evening of Wednesday, November 2, 2022, after more than eight months of negotiations between the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Health Employers Association of BC (HEABC).
 
The HSPBA bargaining committee went to the bargaining table with strong direction from members to address wages that have fallen behind their colleagues across the country, recruitment and retention strategies to support specialized health care professionals working under crushing workloads, and respect for the critical contributions of specialized health care professionals on the health care team.
 
The tentative agreement provides general wage increases on par with recently ratified public sector agreements under the government's wage mandate, which protects workers against the rising cost of living. Importantly, it also provides a new wage structure that makes B.C. wages for health science professionals competitive with their counterparts across the country.
 
Important features of the tentative agreement include:

  • General wage increase that acknowledges the impact of the rising cost of living.
  • Overhaul of an outdated job classification system to better recognize the complexity and scope of the work of HSP members on the specialized health care team.
  • Provisions to address the recruitment and retention crisis.
  • Addressing occupational health and safety issues ranging from workers' mental mental health, unsafe workloads, improved infection control standards, access to personal protective equipment and violence prevention.
  • Acting on recommendations from the In Plain Sight report on the experience of Indigenous workers, patients, and clients in the health care system to work toward reconciliation and culturally safe health care.
  • Plotting a roadmap for improved inclusion within the health care workforce for communities that experience marginalization.
  • Scheduling and leave provisions to improve work-life balance.
  • Improvements to continuing education and recognition of professional status.

Complete information about the tentative agreement will be provided to members across the province in the coming weeks, with dates for an online ratification vote to be determined.
 
In solidarity,

Your Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association



UWU/MoveUP

November 21, 2022

HSPBA - Information package on tentative agreement - BC General Employees' Un...

For almost 20 years, provincial governments in B.C. worked deliberately to drive down wages for health science professionals in B.C.

In many cases they succeeded, leaving health professionals earning some of the lowest wages relative to their colleagues across Canada. It was a misguided attempt to control health care costs; instead, it slowly undermined the health care system, even before the pandemic created the current crisis of dire shortages and crushing workload.

With the tentative agreement just secured on behalf of all health science professionals, this begins to turn around.

  • For the first time in decades, this proposed agreement provides significant pay increases, delivering members an increase of approximately 12 to 14 per cent more, at the minimum, over three years.
  • Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) are built in to protect pay against longer-term increases in inflation.
  • Improvements to premiums for on-call, short-notice, super shifts, and weekend shifts will put more money in many members' pockets.
  • A long-overdue update to the classification system provides more recognition of the complexity and scope of work, more opportunity for career advancement, and more respect.
  • Specific provisions address the recruitment and retention crisis.
  • Occupational health and safety changes address mental health under duress, unsafe workloads, infection control standards, access to personal protective equipment, and prevention of violence in the workplace.
  • Leaves for enhanced education support professional development.
  • A new focus on implementing recommendations to support the inclusion of Indigenous workers, patients, and clients will work toward reconciliation and culturally-safe health care.
  • Inclusion of communities that experience marginalization in the health care system is a major priority.

The bargaining committee strongly recommends voting in favour of ratification of this tentative agreement. Voting details are below.

In the coming weeks, we will be conducting a series of telephone town halls, inviting all members to call in to listen to reports, hear questions from other members, and ask questions themselves. More information on that will be coming soon, and in the meantime, here's how you can learn more about the details of the tentative agreement:

Contact us with your questions

To find out more about how this tentative agreement will affect your position, send your questions to [email protected].

Voting information


Voting on the tentative agreement is open to all members covered by the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association and will be held online. Voting will be open from 9 a.m., December 6 to 5 p.m., December 20.

You will need a voting credential to cast your vote, and these will be sent out by email.

In solidarity,
Your Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association


UWU/MoveUP

November 15, 2022

HSPBA - You have a tentative agreement. What comes next? - BC General Employe...

Your bargaining committee has been at work for over nine months to improve your wages, benefits, and working conditions. They've drafted, re-drafted, and finalized proposals that capture all the great ideas brought forward at our bargaining conference in October 2021. And they've pushed hard for the employer to address problems that have gone on for years. 


Now, your bargaining committee has recommended a tentative collective agreement to you that will increase your wages, expand your benefits, and improve working conditions for health science professionals across the province. 

Here's what comes next:

    1. Confirm your contact information

      It's important that your contact information is up to date so that we can send you the details of the proposed agreement and your link to vote online on the agreement.

      Click here to log in to the BCGEU Member Portal to review and update your contact information. If you don't have a Member Portal account yet, click here to request one, and then watch for an email with instructions on how to activate your account. 

      Ask your coworkers if they have received this email - if they have not received it, encourage them to visit the Member Portal at https://my.bcgeu.ca/signup to update their information and make sure they receive the collective agreement information and voting link by email.

    2. Information about the proposed agreement

      Detailed information about the proposed collective agreement changes will be sent out, along with invites to attend telephone town hall sessions to hear from members of your bargaining team and ask questions. 

    3. Vote on the proposed agreement 

      As long as we have your current email address, voting will be quick and easy through our online process. Voting dates and more information will be circulated as soon as possible.

 

 In solidarity,

Your Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association



UWU/MoveUP

November 04, 2022

HSPBA - Tentative agreement reached for Health Science - BC General Employees...

B.C.'s 22,000 specialized health professionals working in hospitals and communities around the province reached a tentative agreement on the evening of Wednesday, November 2, 2022, after more than eight months of negotiations between the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Health Employers Association of BC (HEABC).
 
The HSPBA bargaining committee went to the bargaining table with strong direction from members to address wages that have fallen behind their colleagues across the country, recruitment and retention strategies to support specialized health care professionals working under crushing workloads, and respect for the critical contributions of specialized health care professionals on the health care team.
 
The tentative agreement provides general wage increases on par with recently ratified public sector agreements under the government's wage mandate, which protects workers against the rising cost of living. Importantly, it also provides a new wage structure that makes B.C. wages for health science professionals competitive with their counterparts across the country.
 
Important features of the tentative agreement include:

  • General wage increase that acknowledges the impact of the rising cost of living.
  • Overhaul of an outdated job classification system to better recognize the complexity and scope of the work of HSP members on the specialized health care team.
  • Provisions to address the recruitment and retention crisis.
  • Addressing occupational health and safety issues ranging from workers' mental mental health, unsafe workloads, improved infection control standards, access to personal protective equipment and violence prevention.
  • Acting on recommendations from the In Plain Sight report on the experience of Indigenous workers, patients, and clients in the health care system to work toward reconciliation and culturally safe health care.
  • Plotting a roadmap for improved inclusion within the health care workforce for communities that experience marginalization.
  • Scheduling and leave provisions to improve work-life balance.
  • Improvements to continuing education and recognition of professional status.

Complete information about the tentative agreement will be provided to members across the province in the coming weeks, with dates for an online ratification vote to be determined.
 
In solidarity,

Your Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association



UWU/MoveUP

October 21, 2022

HSPBA BARGAINING UPDATE: Advancing proposals on central concerns - BC General...

Since negotiations resumed at the end of September, the HSPBA Bargaining Committee has been working to advance measures to address recruitment, retention, staffing shortages and workload issues, which drive so many of the serious issues affecting the public health care system, the people who depend on it, and the professionals who keep it running.

The employer remains resistant to covering the final distance to agreement on these matters. However, we are pleased to report progress on initiatives addressing truth and reconciliation, improving the working lives of Indigenous members, and promoting cultural safety for all specialized health professionals. The discussions are also addressing a range of physical and psychological safety and wellness concerns.

Your bargaining committee has also proposed improvements to union representation in your workplaces – by adding more paid stewards – as an important objective. 

Inflation protection for wages remains a central focus in your bargaining committee's efforts. Recently, union members covered by the Facilities Bargaining Agreement and the Main Public Service Agreement ratified their respective agreements. Both of those agreements included inflation protections in the general wage increase. While neither agreement achieved the level of protection the bargaining committees initially sought, each agreement offers a level of inflation protection not seen in decades. The general wage increases in these agreements give some sense of where discussions on wage increases currently sit at the HSPBA table.

As negotiations proceed through the critical phase of the next few weeks, it's more important than ever to ensure that we have your up-to-date contact information, including your personal email address and phone number. Click here to log in to the Member Portal to review and update your contact information. If you haven't signed up for Member Portal yet, click here to request your account, and then watch for an email with instructions on how to activate your account.

In solidarity,

Your Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association



UWU/MoveUP

July 11, 2022

HSPBA bargaining update - Work continues over summer - BC General Employees' ...

As we enter the summer, the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) continues to co-ordinate with other unions and public sector bargaining associations to speak with a louder voice in support of our common goals.
 
Your HSPBA negotiation committee has tabled a wage proposal that seeks to deal with rising inflation. We have not yet had a substantive response on this. However, you may be aware that the Public Service Bargaining Committee, representing your fellow BCGEU members in the public service, have received – and rejected – a wage offer because it did not include inflation protection for wages.
 
BCGEU members in the public service recently voted 95 per cent in favour of going on strike, if necessary, to back contract demands. The public service bargaining committee is focusing its efforts over the next several weeks on negotiating essential services levels in anticipation of possible job action. B.C.'s essential services legislation requires that agreement be reached on essential services of staffing required to protect the public from immediate and serious danger, while balancing workers' right to strike. 
 
Unions in the health care sector have been working on establishing agreement on essential service staffing levels since January, ensuring that health science professionals are in a position to support job action in the event that bargaining breaks down at the health sciences table.
 
If your bargaining committee is not able to get to a tentative agreement that meets your needs, they may make a recommendation to conduct a strike vote to show the employer they have your full support in demanding a contract that values the work you do.
 
HSPBA negotiations, which are led by an elected bargaining committee and conducted by professional negotiators and subject experts on labour relations issues, are now on a scheduled pause. A working group will continue throughout the summer, negotiating items addressing issues of health and safety.
 
There are still significant health and safety issues to deal with, such as workload, fatigue, point of care risk assessments, access to PPE, violence prevention and support for the new Health Care Occupational Health and Safety Society (SWITCH BC). Focused discussions on health and safety issues led by a small sub-committee have made some encouraging progress to date. The joint employer/HSPBA group met separately on seven occasions since bargaining began in March, and has reached tentative agreement in key areas, including new language on the employers' responsibility to address threats of violence against workers or their families, requirements for employers to consult with joint occupational health and safety committees on risks associated with musculoskeletal injuries, new language on health and safety training for supervisors, and improved language covering potentially violent or aggressive behaviour from patients, residents or clients.
 
There are no plans for job action for members covered by the HSPBA collective agreement at this time. While progress at the negotiating table is slow, we remain focused on achieving movement when discussions resume after the summer pause.
 
In the event that you do encounter a picket line this summer, do not cross it, and contact your union for direction.
 
In solidarity,
 
Your Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association



UWU/MoveUP

June 24, 2022

Health Science Professionals Sectoral Council first meeting - BC General Empl...

The newly elected Health Science Professionals Sectoral Council met this week to begin looking at ways to address the specific concerns of the 2,700 Health Science Professionals working in BC Health Authorities. 

The Council will be meeting periodically over the next three years to look at building membership capacity and participation with a focus on ensuring concerns of HSP's are heard at all levels of our Union.

At this meeting, the following positions were elected:

Binny Sivia, Local 404 – Sectoral Council Chairperson
Cayce Laviolette, Local 403 – Vice Chairperson
Nicole Lockie, Local 405 - Recording Secretary
Andrea McLeod, Local 407 – Alternate Recording Secretary

The other council members are:

Stephen Morgan, Local 402
Jacqueline Grieve, Local 408
Paula Dyson, Local 409
Ali Moore, Local 410
Yvonne Liang, Local 411

If you have any questions about this Council or suggestions on how they can help, please email: [email protected].

Download PDF of notice here



UWU/MoveUP

June 23, 2022

Fellow BCGEU members in the public service voted in favour of strike action -...

Have you heard the news? Your fellow BCGEU members in the Public Service voted 94.6% in favour of striking for a fair collective agreement that includes cost-of-living-adjustments. Here’s how this affects you:
 
Members directly employed by the Government of B.C. took a strike vote to push their employer, the Public Service Agency (PSA), to improve their disappointing wage offer and come back with a fair proposal. As the vote wrapped up – before we even knew the results – their employer asked the union’s bargaining committee to return to negotiations. 
 
Just by voting, your fellow members sent a strong message to their employer. Today they amplified that message, and made it clear they’re united in their commitment to negotiate fair wages. They are now in a strong position to get a fair deal, and this is good news for you because the public service is the largest sectoral bargaining unit in the province and can set a strong precedent for other sectors like yours.
 
A win for the public service is a win for you. 
 
Am I going on strike? 
No, your bargaining unit is not going on strike. The strike vote does not apply to your bargaining unit, only to the 33,000 members in the Public Service (direct government services in Components 1, 5, 6, 12 and 20).
 
Are public service members going on strike? 
Not immediately. This will depend on their employer’s position when they return to the bargaining table. Depending on that, BCGEU public service members may have to action the strike vote. Don't worry – we will provide updates when we know more. 
 
Many of you work alongside these members, we all depend on the services they provide, so your union will tell you ahead of time if there will be any job action.
 
Make sure to keep up-to-date with updates from your bargaining committee to find out actions you can take to help them apply pressure at the bargaining table. If they’re feeling the strength of our solidarity from all sides, they cannot ignore us. 
 
In Solidarity,
 
Stephanie Smith
BCGEU President 



UWU/MoveUP

June 23, 2022

Health Science Professional Members - Action required: update your Informatio...

Now that bargaining talks with your employer are underway, it's more important than ever to make sure that our union has your up-to-date contact information. The situation could change rapidly, and you could miss important updates if we don't have your personal email address and phone number.

Our updated BCGEU Member Portal makes it easy for you to review and update your contact information, and it will be an important resource for you during bargaining. We're asking all Health Science Professional members to update their contact information by July 29. Will you log in to Member Portal to review and update your contact information now? 

If you don’t yet have a Member Portal account, click here to request your account, and then watch for an email with instructions on how to activate it.

Updating your contact information is essential to make sure you can have your say in key decisions through this round of bargaining. For example, should we need to take a strike vote it will be very important that our union can reach you. Additionally, when we reach a tentative agreement, we will need to be able to communicate with you about a ratification vote. 

In certain circumstances we may need to reach you by phone or text message, so we recommend providing a cell phone number to ensure you don't miss any information. If you don't have a cell phone, be sure to provide a phone number where we can reach you. 

Click here to visit the BCGEU Member Portal to review and update your contact information before July 29.
 
Once your contact information is up to date, please talk to your co-workers to make sure they update their email address and phone number in the Member Portal too. It may be necessary for us to take collective action to put pressure on the employer and for that to succeed we'll need to be able to communicate with all members in your sector.
 
In solidarity,
 
Michelle McAuley
Staff Representative, Negotiations

Download PDF of notice here



UWU/MoveUP