The HEABC-led employer bargaining team and the Nurses’ Bargaining Association (NBA) have reached a tentative agreement under the Province’s Shared Recovery Mandate. Negotiations commenced for a new collective agreement on December 8, 2022. Negotiations under the Shared Recovery Mandate support government’s key priorities to improve public services and the health care system, while supporting the province’s continued economic recovery for all.
Highlights of the tentative agreement include:
- General wage increases (GWI) for all employees effective:
- April 1, 2022: $0.25 per hour and then 3.24 per cent
- April 1, 2023: 5.5 per cent plus up to 1.25 per cent Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) (Now confirmed that 1.25 per cent COLA will apply)
- April 1, 2024: 2.0 per cent plus up to 1.0 per cent COLA
- A revised wage schedule with new increments at 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, 25 years, and 30 years
- Indigenous specific anti-racism language consistent with other health sector agreements
- Participation with the new Provincial Health Human Resources Coordination Centre (PHHRCC) for bargaining associations and a PHHRCC working group focused on diversity, equity and inclusion
- A new premium for regular status employees of $2.15 per hour, for each hour worked, excluding overtime
- Increases to shift premiums, on-call rates, responsibility pay, business allowance and isolation allowance
- Expansion of voluntary shift exchanges and job share language to enhance flexibility
Further details will be available in the coming weeks as the ratification processes for both union members and employers unfold.