Bargaining Team report April 11, 2024
Unlike previous bargaining sessions this week, the Bargaining Team asked the Employer to meet with us at the start of the day, in order to present the comprehensive packages we had sent them at the end of the day on April 10.
In our presentation, we highlighted several areas of significant change to all-units and unit-specific proposals.
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On across-the-board (ATB) wages, we came down by 1% (distributed 0.25% in the third year of the retroactive period, and 0.25% across each of the three renewal years). We also countered with a modified version of the eligibility language in the Employer’s April 10 pass, to give members more clarity and predictability about their retroactive lump sum payment. Finally, we countered to include both GIA and GFA in ATB increases.
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We agreed to the Employer’s Letter of Agreement on workplace accommodations for all three units. This achieves an important gain proposed by the Union to begin to have proper input into setting policy on workplace accommodations.
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We offered a counter on the Union-administered Childcare Fund for all three units and the amounts allocated to the Lee Wiggins Childcare Centre and the York Co-operative Daycare Centre. The Employer’s April 10 package had the first meaningful offer for the Childcare Centres, but it is still below what they need.
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We revised our proposal concerning the extension of library and email services to include the formation of a committee to investigate the feasibility of extending these services for retirees and members after their contracts end.
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In the Unit 2 framework, we offered a revised proposal for the Letter of Understanding (PKINs), which seeks to ensure grand-parenting for PKIN instructors who currently are in effect being deemed not qualified to teach in the IPAL program, despite many years of movement-based teaching and knowledge. This proposal is not only important for the members most immediately affected, it also represents a way to push back against the erosion of seniority.
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For Unit 3, we countered on Article 10.10 concerning the funding commitment for priority pool members and on the Letter of Agreement (re: the Graduate Assistant Training Fund).
After the presentation, the BT and membership conferred about various details relating to process and planning for the next few days, before the Employer returned at 2 p.m. with counter proposals.
The employer’s April 11 offer continues to lowball on wages (moving up by only 0.2%), on funding for the Child Care centres (moving up by only $800 each), and they are still denying our position that GFA has historically been part of ATB wages. Notably, the Employer has proposed $4000 per allocation for the Graduate Assistant Training (GAT) Fund while denying the Union’s proposal to allocate any remaining monies in the GAT Fund to be transferred back to the Graduate Assistant Bursary Fund prior to the expiration of the 2023-26 collective agreement. On library and email access, they have agreed to do their own inquiries and report back to the Labour-Management Committee. One significant new movement is that the Employer has finally agreed to our fund for racialized members who have experienced racial discrimination, harassment, and violence in the workplace–though they are only offering $25,000, which is half what we proposed, and coupling those funds with a reporting requirement. They remain resistant to the accompanying accommodations piece, and to the PKIN proposal.
Another notable feature of the Employer’s April 11 package is that they have made it conditional by asking the Union Bargaining Team to sign off on the offer by 11:59 pm on April 13, and ratification by April 19. They have also indicated that by April 12 at noon, they would be providing us with their proposal on back to work protocols. We have indicated that we will be bringing the Employer our next pass sometime on Friday, and both parties have agreed to continue bargaining on Saturday. While we still remain far apart on a number of areas of great importance to our members, perhaps most notably benefits as well as Unit 2 job stability, but the Employer has certainly signaled their wish to reach agreement this weekend.
For the final portion of our meeting today, we worked on preparing for the SGMM.
Bargaining on April 12 is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 5p.m. All members are welcome. You can register for the meeting in advance using the following link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZItduugrTosHtz-yrywO4rhJ844j7r5jU7_