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About 5,000 paramedics and ambulance dispatchers in B.C. have reached a new agreement under the government’s Shared Recovery Mandate.
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Agreement reached with ambulance paramedics, dispatchers
Published 4:28 PST, Thu February 16, 2023
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The Health Employers Association of BC and the members of the Ambulance Paramedics and Dispatchers Bargaining Association have ratified an agreement under the Shared Recovery Mandate.
The agreement covers about 5,000 paramedics and ambulance dispatchers in British Columbia. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 873 represents the employees in the ambulance service. Paramedics and ambulance dispatchers are employees of BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS), which is part of Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA).
Key priorities of the 2022 mandate include:
• Protecting the services that people in British Columbia depend on
• Improving health care and preparing for future needs and challenges
• Supporting a strong economic recovery that includes everyone in B.C.
Negotiations are focused on providing a fair and reasonable offer to public-sector workers that includes significant inflation protection, while ensuring that government has the resources to continue to invest in building a stronger province for everyone.
The ratified agreement includes a three-year term (April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2025). It also includes general wage increases of:
• Year 1: a flat increase of $0.25 per hour, which provides a greater percentage increase for lower-paid employees, plus a wage increase of 3.24 per cent
• Year 2: 5.5 per cent plus a potential cost-of-living adjustment to a maximum of 6.75 per cent
• Year 3: two per cent plus a potential cost-of-living adjustment to a maximum of three per cent
A negotiable flexibility allocation for as much as 0.25 per cent is included in the first two years to support mutually beneficial outcomes for both parties.
Other achievements in this round of negotiations included increases to improve on-call coverage and response times in rural and remote communities, as well as provisions on Indigenous-specific anti-racism initiatives, including paid leave to support Indigenous employees in connecting with cultural and spiritual beliefs. In addition, the parties agreed to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, including a provincial working group and the removal of gender-normative uniform rules.
About 288,000 provincial public-sector employees are covered by tentative or ratified agreements reached under B.C.'s Shared Recovery Mandate.
To learn more about public sector bargaining in B.C., visit gov.bc.ca/psecbargaining.
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