The K-12 Presidents Council executive board is pleased to announce that a tentative agreement was reached between the K-12 Provincial Bargaining Council (PBC) and the British Columbia Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA) late Thursday evening on a provincial framework agreement. The three-year agreement takes effect on July 1, 2019 and remains in effect until June 30, 2022.
Highlights of the agreements include:
- General wage increases of 2% in each year of the three-year contract
- Language on violence in the workplace
- Establishment of a Joint Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) Taskforce
- An OH&S evaluation to be conducted at each K-12 worksite (1,367 in total)
- Right to refuse unsafe work language is now included in the agreement
- Establishment of a Provincial Labour Management Committee
- A skills enhancement fund
- Additional funds have been committed to continuing the implementation of a province-wide, gender-neutral job evaluation program
- For the first time in almost 20 years, there is new money for local bargaining as part of the agreement
- Plus other language improvements
“The K-12 Provincial Bargaining Council and BCPSEA worked hard this week,” says K-12 Presidents Council President Warren Williams. “We were able to attain gains that strengthen our local bargaining ability and address some of the issues that are most important to our members.”
Further details on the tentative agreement will not be made public until CUPE K-12 members have the opportunity to review them. Once endorsed by the K-12 Presidents Council, it will form the provincial agreement portion of proposals that will go forward in local bargaining between CUPE locals and their respective school districts.
The Premier’s Awards for Excellence in Education, for the first time ever, include a category for support staff in public schools. Nominations have been extended and now close on June 30.