Whitecourt education workers vote on 2.75% raise

Earlier this week, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees published an announcement on their website that education support workers in the Whitecourt area had a new tentative agreement to vote on.

These workers are employed with the Living Waters Catholic Separate School Division in such positions as financial assistants, secretaries, clerks, custodians, librarians, early childhood facilitators, classroom supervisors, and maintenance workers.

The last contract between these workers and Living Waters expired in August 2020, about 3.5 years ago.

The tentative contract is set to run from September 2020 to August 2024. During those four years, the workers will receive, if they ratify the contract, a combined wage increase of 2.75%.

That includes wage freezes in the first two years of the contract.

1 Sep 2020	0.00%
1 Sep 2021	0.00%
1 Jun 2023	1.25%
1 Feb 2024	1.50%

That works out to an average of 0.69% per year.

This follows a combined increase of 2.5% in their previous contract.

Let’s review this.

Since September 2016, assuming workers will ratify this new contract, these workers will have received a combined 5.25% wage increase by the end of this contract.

If we account for compound increases, it technically amounts to 5.36%.

In September 2016, the consumer price index in Alberta sat at 135.3. By September 2023, 7 years later, it had jumped to 166.0, an increase of 30.7, or 22.69%.

So in the time that wages for those workers will have increased 5.36%, inflation will has increased 22.69%. That means these workers will see a reduction in real wages, which is wages adjusted for inflation.

Even though the workers are scheduled to receive a 5.36% wage increase by the end of the contract, compared to September 2016, inflation will result in an effective wage cut of 17.33%.

In other words, what cost these workers $100 in September 2016 would’ve cost $117.33 this past September. To put it another way, that same $100 will only be able to cover only $82.67 in good and services today.

And that’s only until September 2023. By the time this new contract ends, another year of inflation will have gone by, which means the cut to real wages will be even greater.

Here are some other changes workers can expect if they approve this agreement.

In the previous agreement, the employer could extend the 6-month probationary period for new workers by another 3 months. The new contract keeps that in place but also offers the option of extending the probationary period to account for time off for sick leave, vacation, layoff, or leave of absence.

Under the new agreement, workers facing discipline are entitled to receive notice of the discipline from the employer within 10 work days of the incident that prompted the discipline.

Previously, workers had to be with the employer for 10 months before being eligible for maternity leave. That’s been reduced to just 90 days. And the leave itself has been increased from 18 weeks to 78 weeks. Workers also had to apply for leave at least 3 months in advance, but that’s been cut in half to just 6 weeks. As well, workers who experience miscarriage or stillbirth will still be eligible, something not available under the previous contract.

Paternal leave has been increased from 37 weeks to 62 weeks. Like with maternity leave, workers will qualify once they’ve been with the employer for 90 days, instead of 10 months.

The tentative agreement includes a new clause for birth/adoption leave, which gives them a day off, with pay, for the birth or adoption of their child, which can be taken on the day of birth or adoption, the day prior, or the day following.

Under the previous agreement, workers wouldn’t receive pay or a day off in lieu of Remembrance Day if it fell on a non-school week day or a Saturday or Sunday. This restriction has been removed in the tentative agreement.

Ratification is taking place online. It began yesterday and will end tomorrow. Workers should have received a link already to vote.

Since the tentative agreement has an end date of August 2024, if it passes, the negotiating will barely have time to catch their breath before having to begin bargaining on the next contract.