News Release
December 16, 2004
PSAC members ratify new agreement
with Parks Canada Agency
OTTAWA - Members of the Public Service Alliance of
Canada working at Parks Canada Agency have accepted a new collective
agreement that was negotiated in mid-October after a two-month rotating
and general strike.
The four-year agreement, which expires on August 4,
2007, provides for across-the-board annual wage increases for the
4,800 members of PSAC at Parks, as well as additional salary adjustments
ranging from 2.6% to 19% for operational service workers that will
go towards closing a wage disparity identified by a Treasury Board-PSAC
pay study.
“It was our members' determination and strong show
of solidarity over the two months of the strike that led us to achieve
some significant improvements in the collective agreement,” says
PSAC National President Nycole Turmel. “Their collective
action and sacrifices ultimately forced the employer back to the
negotiating table and make a significantly improved offer from their
previous one.”
Before the strike in August, the Agency's wage offer
was 2.5%, 2% and 2%, plus a 4% increment to address the 20% wage
gap identified by the Treasury Board-PSAC pay study between operational
services workers and their counterparts in the private and other
public sectors.
“The employer launched an aggressive media campaign
claiming that their offer was more than generous,” says PSAC Regional
Executive Vice-President for the Atlantic Jeannie Baldwin.
“However, our striking members were giving a more factual message
to the public on the picket lines and received overwhelming public
support during the strike. The public loves their national
parks, canals, heritage sites and conservation areas and do not
want these compromised by the Agency's undercutting of Parks workers,
and we thank them for their support.”
Another breakthrough in the new collective agreement
is the modification of marriage leave to allow for same-sex unions.
Other highlights of the collective agreement, which
90 % of PSAC members across the country ratified, include:
• annual wage increases across the board
of 2.5% retroactive to August 2003, 2.25% for 2004, 2.4%
for 2005 and 2.5% for 2006;
• improvements in overtime, call-back and
reporting pay and shift premiums; and
• other salary improvements for some groups through
pay harmonization and restructuring and terminable allowances.
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For information:
Joselito Calugay, PSAC communications officer,
(613) 560-4235 or (613) 293-9324
117-161204
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