Public sector wage arbitration deferral

The Public Sector Wage Arbitration Deferral Act (Bill 9) postponed collective bargaining to allow time to fully understand Alberta’s economic situation.

Status: Bill 9 received royal assent on June 28, 2019
Ministry responsible: Treasury Board and Finance

Overview

The Public Sector Wage Arbitration Deferral Act postponed wage reopener arbitration hearings until after October 31, 2019. This affected 24 collective agreements, covering about 180,000 public sector employees.

Postponing the hearings gave government more time to fully understand Alberta’s economic situation and consider advice from the MacKinnon “Blue Ribbon” Panel.

Key details

The act:

  • postponed the start of arbitration hearings until after October 31, 2019
  • temporarily suspended hearings that are already underway until October 31, 2019

Next steps

The act took effect on June 28, 2019.

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