Last week, the City of Lethbridge posted an update on their website regarding contract negotiations for paramedics and firefighters.
The City of Lethbridge employs 253 members of Local 237 of the International Association of Firefighters in paramedic, firefighting, fire prevention, and dispatch roles, which is 30 more than when they settled their previous collective agreement back in 2018.
That agreement expired on 31 December 2020, which means these workers have gone nearly 5 years without a new collective agreement.
Two main changes appear in the new collective agreement.
First, are wage increases every year of the new 5-year contract.
| 1 January 2021 | 2.75% |
| 1 January 2022 | 3.25% |
| 1 January 2023 | 3.00% |
| 1 January 2024 | 3.75% |
| 1 January 2025 | 3.00% |
That is a combined 16.25%, or 16.77% if you account for compound increases. That is an annual average of 3.25% (3.35%). The annual average in their previous collective agreement was 2.08%.
By comparison, inflation in Alberta during this period was 17.55%, so these raises come pretty close to covering inflation.
The second major change in the collective agreement is the ability for Lethbridge Fire and Emergency Services to implement a new operating model that will continue the integrated fire and EMS service but allow workers to choose to remain in the EMS division.
Until this change, workers were trained as paramedics and firefighters, but they would spend several years working in EMS before expanding to firefighting.
Now, new workers will start as dedicated EMS workers, receiving training support to advance to firefighting closer to when they would start actively working in fire suppression.
According to the City of Lethbridge, the change will allow the department to operate more efficiently and provides for flexible recruitment and career opportunities with LFES.
Calling this change an industry-leading approach, Greg Adair, the chief of LFES, sees it as a move to long-term sustainability.
“It is significant for our department because it creates a long-term strategy to map out a sustainable way forward. It will help with recruitment, retention and financial viability while still supporting our integrated approach – a system we know provides an extremely high level of service our community.”
The ratification vote occured on 27 November 2025, and 99% of IAFF members in this bargaining unit participated. Of those who participated in the election, 95% voted in favour of ratification, so this is a pretty strong showing of support for the agreement.
City Council, representing the employer, ratified the tentative agreement during their first city council meeting of December 2025. They ratified it unanimously.
Because this new contract is for 5 years and the previous contract expired almost 5 years ago, unfortunately, it means the new contract will expire this month. The bargaining team for these workers will not get much of a break before having to start negotiating the next contract.
Their last contract was ratified less than 2 years after the one previous to that one had expired, so this was a much longer negotiation.
Only 1 bargaining unit still remains in Lethbridge that has not received a new contract. Workers employed by the Lethbridge Public Library are members Local 70 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees. They have been waiting since 2022 for a new collective agreement.
