Date: March 1, 2024
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
First off, we are happy to welcome Stephanie Hahn-Chisholm to the bargaining committee. We have been lucky to have her bring some insight, commitment, wisdom, and good company to our side of the table. With her help we have been providing short reports on our progress at bargaining at the end of each session, but it is time for a more complete account of events to date and especially the steps forward we took at the last session. We have met with the Employer 4 times since the contract expired on the 1st of April and we have a wage offer from them on the table as of the 22nd of February.
To recap the whole process to date, on the 23rd of January 2023 we sent notice to the Employer that we wanted to bargain. They responded promptly and we met via zoom in May and August of 2023. We had to cancel some other summer dates. As usual the Union came out of the gate with a comprehensive set of proposals devised to address a range of issues brought forward by the members through bargaining surveys and discussions with the bargaining committee members. The Employer showed up with a few housekeeping changes. Although we got started a lot faster than last time and there was a lot less time wasted debating the process, we still got the feeling the Employer was planning to drag it out. They were slow to respond, asked for explanations repeatedly, and only agreed to things in tiny steps.
The clearest direction we got from you at the start was that you wanted this done quickly for a change and you wanted a real wage proposal – not a “me too” promise and not a bunch of zeroes years after the fact. So, after the slow summer and no dates in fall we got the Employer to come to Saskatoon for three days of in person bargaining in December – the soonest we could get. In three days we ripped through our non-monetary proposal and tabled a comprehensive offer that included a three year deal with generous pay increases in each year and a few other bits and pieces. We were comfortable withdrawing a lot of things because we proposed a short contract so we could get another chance at them soon. And that was the mandate. Get a contract quickly and get a wage increase.
The Employer wasn’t ready for that and couldn’t counter propose in December so we agreed to meet again on February the 21st and 22nd. We told them to bring a counter proposal and they did. They proposed a 3 year agreement with a promise that SEIU-West members at CBS would get the same wage increase that CUPE members at SHA get whenever they get it. For the first time in a long time, we were surprised. They’ve dumped some bold stuff on the table before but in light of what happened in the last round of bargaining this had to be the wildest. There were words. We pointed out that their proposal was all but identical to the one that was the subject of a successful unfair labour practice complaint in 2022 and that we were ready to stop and proceed with another complaint immediately if they stood by it.
We tabled a counter proposal that was just a way of providing them with another chance and they took it. They tabled a proposal for a 3 year agreement from the 1st of April 2023 to the 31st of March 2026 with 2% wage increases in every year. There were a few other tiny goodies and a couple of language items but the combination of the wage increase and the term was the main feature. For a second time we were surprised. All that patience and perseverance from the last round worked. They finally came to the table to bargain – after nearly 7 years of stalling tactics and threats and hollow promises they finally tabled an honest bargaining proposal. We did it.
But we didn’t let that make us giddy. We counter proposed with 4% pay increases in each of 3 years and a few small goodies. The Employer was not able to respond before we ran out of time. We only had 2 days in this session. We are waiting for them to confirm dates in the beginning of April. We will advise you of those dates as soon as they are set. In the meantime, even though we don’t have a deal yet, take a moment for a deep breath and to congratulate yourselves. The last round of bargaining was a long hard road of disappointment and frustration and unfairness all of it heaped on to get you to give in and accept that the Employer didn’t really have to bargain with you. But you didn’t give in and neither did your committee and it’s starting to look like the Employer is willing to bargain. We still have work to do and there will be choices to make soon but we have taken a huge step forward.
Once again congratulations and thank you for your patience and support.
If you have collective agreement questions or issues, you can contact the Member Resource Centre by calling 1-888-999-7348 ext 2298, by email at [email protected], or by visiting the Contact page on our website at www.seiuwest.ca.
Your SEIU-West Bargaining Committee:
SEIU-West members: Heather Dyck (Unit Chair, CBS Saskatoon); Kristie Pearton (Unit Vice-Chair, CBS Saskatoon); Jason Coombs (Bargaining Committee member, CBS Regina); Stephanie Hahn-Chisholm (Bargaining Committee member, CBS Regina); • SEIU-West staff: Cam McConnell (Negotiations Officer); Marj Markwart (Union Representative) and Shelley Johnson (Union Representative)