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Bargaining Update: June 08, 2009
EDMONTON — Contract negotiations between the union and ATB
management have reached an impasse. A joint application was made at the
end of April to the Labour Relations Board seeking the appointment of a
government mediator to assist the parties in reaching a settlement. The dates
for mediation sessions are June 15 and 16, 2009 with provincial mediator
Bertha Greenstein. The items in dispute are primarily monetary. ATB is
crying the financial blues and are not prepared to agree to any improvements
in compensation for union members. ATB has taken this hard line position
with its front-line workers despite awarding huge bonuses to upper
management. The salary offer tabled by ATB is a zero per cent increase in the
first year of a two-year contract with a wage re-opener in the second year.
They also want the 2 per cent progression through the salary ranges, effective
April 1, to be suspended. The union has tabled 5 per cent effective April 1,
2009 and a further 5 per cent effective April 1, 2010 along with the current
language dealing with progression through the salary ranges. Proposals
the employer has said NO to: 1. Union proposal to increase shift and weekend premiums by $0.50 per hour. 2. Union proposal to increase supplemental location allowance for employees working in Banff and Canmore to $550.00 per month along with designating Grande Prairie as a new defined location with a $550.00 per month allowance. 3. Union proposal to improve the vacation entitlements formula. The employer has also tabled their new ATB Flexible Benefit Plans. Your bargaining committee views the proposal as a piece of the overall collective bargaining process to be voted on as part of a new collective agreement. The union committee wanted to make sure that union employees fully understood the provisions of this new benefit plan. At the union’s request the employer has, to the best of our knowledge, undertaken to inform and educate union employees about the plan. The parties have reached agreement on some items, such as: 1. An increase in the amount of severance pay for long-term employees. 2. Casual employees will now be guaranteed at least three (3) hours of work when they are called in. Also, a new Letter of Understanding has been agreed to that deals with the implementation of “CORE”. A joint committee will be established to explore options to maintain job security for permanent employees. The committee will look at re-deployment and retraining opportunities for employees who may be impacted. The union will focus on maintaining jobs Hopefully the mediation sessions will help us achieve a fair collective agreement.

Your Local 020 Bargaining Committee: --
Steve Nimchuk, AUPE Staff Negotiator