Your bargaining committee met with the Employer over eight days in April and July in an effort to reach a tentative agreement to bring back for your approval. Over the first five days agreement was reached on a number of language issues and the Union tabled our monetary package on April 5th.

The Union's initial monetary proposals included a number of improvements: 

• health and welfare benefits
  • add eye examinations and increase the vision care maximum
  • Plan B (Major services) to your dental plan and increase the annual maximum to $2500 for Plan A and B combined
• increase sick leave bank to 120 days
• Increase vacation for members with 11 or more years of service
• Wages (cumulative increase of 9.8% over a three year agreement expiring in 2019)
  • April 1, 2016: 3% general wage increase
  • April 1, 2017: 3% general wage increase
  • April 1, 2018: 3.5% general wage increase

The Employer's initial response contained:

• health and welfare benefits
  • add eye examinations and increase the vision care maximum
  • no change to the dental coverage
• Increase sick leave bank to 12 days
• Increase vacation for members with 11 or more years of service
• Wages (cumulative increase of 5.08% over a four year agreement expiring in 2020)
  • April 1, 2016: no wage increase
  • April 1, 2017: 2.5% general wage increase
  • April 1, 2018: 1.25% general wage increase
  • April 1, 2019: 1.25% general wage increase

Through July 17th – 19th your committee exchanged several outstanding language proposals and revised monetary proposals but, unfortunately, we were unable to reach agreement on some priority issues you have told us are important to you.

The outstanding priority items are:

Based on a letter submitted to the union by 16 members regarding the vacation year, vacation entitlement and accrual the parties agreed on July 19th to add a late proposal to the items yet to be agreed to. We are working on revising the language to clearly and accurately reflect the way vacation is to be accrued, funded and taken. There is no intent to change the current earn one year, take the next system which has been in place since prior to the first collective agreement.

 If you have not signed a union membership card please contact one of the bargaining committee members to sign one. If you have moved and not updated your contact information with the union, or have changed or not provided the union with your home email address we encourage you to log onto the BCGEU website at https://my.bcgeu.ca/login and do so as soon as possible. This will ensure that you receive future bulletins as soon as they are produced.

To edit your personal contact information:

1. Go to https://my.bcgeu.ca/login and log in. 

2. In the upper left of your screen you will see a box with your name at the top. Click on "edit".

3. Enter the correct information and click "save".

The union is reviewing the options open to us in our continuing efforts to achieve a fair and acceptable renewal collective agreement on your behalf. Options open to us include taking a strike vote and/or applying to the Labour Relations Board for the assistance of a Mediator.

WATCH FOR ANOTHER BULLETIN OVER THE NEXT TWO WEEKS

LETTING YOU KNOW WHAT NEXT STEPS WE WILL BE TAKING!

In solidarity,

Deb Wilson                                     Tereasa Greco

Staff Representative                        Bargaining Committee Chairperson

Erlinda Frijas                                  Darlene Thomas

Bargaining Committee Member        Bargaining Committee Member 

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