This release was issued under a previous government.
“Members of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees who work for Alberta Health Services in auxiliary nursing care have ratified the sixth and final major provincewide contract in this round of bargaining.
“I want to thank negotiators and their support teams on both sides of the table for unprecedented success in negotiating six contracts that carefully balanced no raises with job security. These commonsense agreements reflect our fiscal situation as well as the importance of workers who deliver the vital public services on which Albertans depend. In addition, the government reached contracts with our medical and pharmaceutical partners that also contained no increases in compensation.
“This achievement is what the government meant by controlling expenditure growth without repeating the deep cuts of the past. And as new discussions begin next year with our labour partners, we will continue to responsibly deal with public finances in a manner that reflects our ongoing challenges in getting fair value for our resources.”
In addition to the auxiliary care agreement, five other major contracts were negotiated this round with the Alberta Teachers’ Association, the Health Sciences Association of Alberta, the United Nurses of Alberta and two separate agreements with the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees – health support workers at AHS and provincial public servants.