What's in the Component 20 Agreement?

On November 13, BCGEU members of Component 20 ratified their tentative component agreement. Of the eligible members that voted, 87.2% voted in favour of ratifying.

We’re pleased to share the details of Component 20 tentative component agreement.

In this round of bargaining we addressed a number of allowances and adjustments that our committee felt had fallen behind as well as some practical updates to the standard uniform for fire inspectors. As with any agreement, we also addressed an assortment of housekeeping items, including dates and names, corrected typos and misprints, and other non-substantive updates (e.g., new terminology, gender neutrality, etc.)

Outside of the component agreement, the following changes that were negotiated at the main table will benefit many Component 20 members:

• Professional fees reimbursement will see up to 4% increases year over year based on the 2024 fee schedule
• BC Wildfire firefighters received a number of targeted wage increases, see our webpage on targeted adjustments for details

The full set of details can be found in our component agreement Memorandum of Settlement.

The increases that we negotiated include:

• Footwear allowance increases
  • Increase to $300 biennially for caulk boots, effective April 1, 2026 (up from $274.89)
  • Increase to $300 biennially for safety footwear for fireline employees in the BC Wildfire Service (BCWS), effective April 1, 2026 (up from $219.91)
  • Increase to $220 biennially for all other required safety footwear, effective April 1, 2026 (up from $175.92)
  • We have also expanded eligibility for the BCWS safety footwear allowance: all fireline employees requiring safety footwear will be eligible to claim the allowance in their first year of service, including auxiliary hires and new recruits
• The following allowances have increased in line with the general wage increase (GWI) negotiated in the main agreement (3%, effective on April 1 of each year):
  • The monthly allowance for required uniform cleaning, laundering, and repair.
  • Certified faller allowances
  • The lodging allowance for field staff in the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
• Other targeted increases:
  • Increase to the shift premium allowance ($1.50/hour) while working in areas contaminated with sewage, effective April 1, 2025. (Up from $1.05/hour)
  • A new biweekly allowance of $80 for all employees working as woodland firefighters on a BC Wildfire Service fire crew, effective April 1, 2026

In solidarity,

Your Component 20 bargaining committee