Bargaining for a renewed collective agreement took place against the backdrop of a serious recruitment and retention crisis, and rising cost of living not seen in decades.
That’s why securing an agreement that protects member pay cheques against inflation was a top priority for your bargaining committee.
As a result, the 2022-2025 Facilities collective agreement includes substantial general wage increases, cost-of-living adjustments, shift premiums and several other compensation-related gains.
And many of those wages, premiums and allowances are already available to members retroactively.
Here’s the list of your retroactive gains that all took effect on April 1, 2022:
WAGES
You will have already received back pay to reflect an April 1, 2022 pay rate increase of between 3.82 and 4.47 per cent, depending on where your position falls on the pay grid.
SHIFT PREMIUMS
For weekend, night and evening shifts, you will have already received premium increases ranging from 11.1 to 20 per cent, as set out below including for shifts worked since April 1, 2022:
- Weekend Shift - Increased by $0.20 to $2.00 an hour.
- Night Shift - Increased by $0.50 to $3.00 an hour.
- Evening Shift - Increased by $0.10 to $1.90 an hour.
OTHER COMPENSATION GAINS
If they are a condition of employment, you are now eligible for one or more of these new or enhanced expenses reimbursements retroactive to April 1, 2022:
- Criminal Record Check - You can now be reimbursed for criminal records checks, including the cost of fingerprinting if required.
- Foodsafe - You can be reimbursed for the cost of your FOODSAFE Level 1 Refresher course, plus 1.5 hours of straight time to complete the certification.
- Uniforms - The uniform allowance was raised by $2 to $12 per biweekly pay-period.
- Footwear - You can now be reimbursed up to $125 a year for required Canadian Standard Association certified grade one or two protective toecap or electrical protective footwear.
- Sick Notes - If the employer requires you provide a medical note, they must reimburse 50 percent of the cost.
- Transportation Allowance - If you use your own vehicle in your work for the employer, the per kilometre allowance is now increased to Canada Revenue Agency reasonable per-kilometer allowance which, effective April 1, 2022 was $0.61/km and effective January 1, 2023 is now $0.68/km. The minimum allowance was also increased to $5 from $2 for the use of a vehicle.
- Isolation Travel Allowance - In addition to expanding this allowance to Zeballos, this benefit was renamed so members who qualify for northern residents’ deductions can now claim it on their annual federal income tax return.
This bulletin is part of a series of updates about the renewed Facilities collective agreement. Watch this space for future updates. If you have questions about any of these provisions, please contact your shop steward.