Last week, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees published an update regarding contract negotiations for workers employed by Covenant Health.
The good news is that they have a tentative agreement. The bad news is that it is already more than half over.
According to the collective bargaining agreement database maintained by the Alberta government, the most recent collective agreement for these workers expired in March 2024, over 2 years ago. Negotiations on a new agreement did not begin until that same month.
AUPE represents roughly 600 general support service workers employed by the Catholic private health care provider. This includes a wide variety of positions, including clerks, receptionists, transcriptionists, therapy aides, recreation assistants, pharmacy assistants, lab assistants, porters, attendants, painters, technicians, mechanics, welders, millwrights, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and power engineers, as well as those working in food services, laundry, maintenance, and housekeeping.
The tentative collective agreement includes a 12% wage increase spread out over 4 years, which is what pretty much all public sector workers have been getting since this time last year.
| 1 April 2024* | 3.00% |
| 1 April 2025* | 3.00% |
| 1 April 2026* | 3.00% |
| 1 April 2027 | 3.00% |
| 12.00% |
This is much better than they got in their last contract, which included 2 years of wage freezes. In fact, the contract before also had 2 years of wage freezes.
| 1 April 2017 | 0.00% |
| 1 April 2018 | 0.00% |
| 1 April 2019 | 1.00% |
| 1 April 2020 | 0.00% |
| 1 April 2021 | 0.00% |
| 1 September 2022 | 1.25% |
| 1 April 2023 | 2.00% |
| 4.25% |
Over the course of the last two collective agreements, these workers received a combined wage increase of just 4.25%. During the same period (April 2017–April 2023), inflation in Alberta shot up by 21.17%.
When inflation is 21.17% but wage increases are only 4.25%, it means that real wages—wages adjusted for inflation—actually decreased by 16.92%.
A wage increase of 12% falls short of making up for that loss of nearly 17%. Plus, that 12% is spread out over 4 years, so that means another 4 years of inflation, which will worsen the real wage gap for these workers.
For example, inflation in Alberta since April 2023 has already increased another 6.54%, which is more than half of the proposed combined increase.
Here are some other proposed changes to the collective agreement.
The premium for acting incumbent pay would increase from $1.25 an hour to $3.50 an hour.
Preceptor pay would increase from 65¢ an hour to $2 an hour.
Under the previous collective agreement, on-call duty pay was $3.30 an hour on regularly scheduled working days and $4.50 an hour on regular days off. If workers ratify the tentative agreement, on-call pay would increase across the board to $7 an hour.
The flexible spending account would increase from $900 a year to $1,200 a year, effective 1 January 2026.
Massage therapy would no longer have a per-visit limit, which had been $50 in the previous agreement.
Health coverage would include enhanced diabetic equipment coverage, including continuous glucose monitoring system. There was no coverage under the previous agreement.
Boot reimbursement would increase from $200 a year to $250 a year.
Domestic violence leave would be added to the collective agreement. It would be up to 5 days and would all be paid.
Voting on the tentative agreement begins at 08:30 this morning and will end at 17:00 on Thursday (9th). The vote will occur electronically.
