The Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) completed a third week of bargaining last week with the Health Employers' Association of BC (HEABC). Talks to negotiate a new collective agreement will resume again tomorrow. 

Discussions have centred on measures to enhance job security, including addressing internal equity issues, improving the delivery of disability management programs for members, and expanding access to fill vacancies. Legislative protections for workers and extended parental leaves have been the focus of much discussion, as have been social changes which require updating leave provisions in the contract. 

With a focus on improving the public health care system to strengthen the delivery of patient care, negotiators are pursuing a modernized collective agreement that allows for flexibility in a changing system, while ensuring continued growth in wages, benefits and career opportunities to ensure affordability for the province's dedicated caregivers.

The coming week is expected to see continued discussion of classification redesign, and strategies to assist effective management of workload.

Please share this email with your co-workers. Members are also encouraged to keep their email information up to date. To provide updated contact information, please visit the member portal at my.bcgeu.ca. 

The HSPBA represents 18,000 union members and the BCGEU represents approximately 2,100 health science professionals in various disciplines across the province.