The city and the local firefighters union have agreed to a mediator’s recommendation for a new contract, but the agreement has already lapsed.
During an in camera session Monday evening St. Albert city council ratified the agreement that calls for a general wage increase of 2.5 per cent retroactive to Jan. 1, 2011 and 2.25 per cent increase retroactive to July 1, 2011. First class emergency services personnel will also receive a market adjustment. The entire agreement is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2011 and expired Dec. 31, 2011, leaving the city and union without a deal for 2012.
Under Alberta labour laws, when an agreement lapses, the prior deal remains in effect until a new agreement is ratified. Firefighters are considered an essential service, meaning they do not have the right to strike.
“It’s a fair agreement,” Sean Richards, secretary for the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) local 2130 said. “We always try to be on par with our fellow employees. This is fair compensation.”
The union and city held 19 negotiating sessions before agreeing to approach the province for a mediator. The meeting with the appointed mediator took place on Dec. 14. While the subsequent recommendation is non-binding, both sides agreed to it.
“Ultimately, after 19 meetings we were unable to agree on a wage increase that each party was willing to take back to the their principals, so at that point we went to mediation,” said Doug Gairns, the city’s director of human resources.
Wages appear to have been the most important factor in this agreement. According to Richards, there were other issues on the table but none that “really makes a difference to the people per se.”
“They’re not in the world so it’s kind of hard to explain,” Richards said.
Despite having the agreement concluded, it means there is no new agreement in effect for 2012 and beyond. Richards denied there were any significant challenges preventing the two parties from coming to a multi-year agreement. He said the union did not want to be the first in the province to head back to the bargaining table.
“There’s always reluctancy to be the first out of the gates for an upcoming year,” Richards said.
Gairns said multi-year deals are more common in St. Albert and the mediator’s recommendation for a single-year deal was unusual.
“In St. Albert, historically, we’ve had two-year agreements with the occasional three years. Historically, it’s unusual (to have a one-year deal). We would have preferred a multi-year recommendation.”
Mayor Nolan Crouse echoed Gairns comments, saying council expressed its interest in having a multi-year deal in place.
“It’s better to be looking forward than looking back. I think if we can get ahead of the game, that would be best,” Crouse said.
Council also wants to see the province pick up the tab for the wage adjustments for ambulance workers in the form of increased provincial rebates.
“We have a contract with the province and it lays out what the rebates are, but it may not be reflective of the current announcement. We can’t let it get lost,” he said.
Gairns said that while the new agreement is still fresh, negotiations will need to begin again soon.
“The onus is still on both sides to indicate that interest in getting back together in bargaining.”
