BCGEU, B.C. government reach deal that includes 4 per cent wage increase

Throws out proposal to privatize Liquor Distribution Branch warehouses

The B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) and the British Columbia government reached a tentative agreement late in the evening on Sept. 27, following months of negotiations.

The agreement, which covers more than 25,000 provincewide government workers, comes with several wage increases over the length of the contract. The increases, which are higher than initially offered, are as follows:

• one per cent retroactive to April 1, 2012

• one per cent retroactive to Aug. 15, 2012

• one per cent in April 2013

• one per cent in December 2013.

“We knew this round of bargaining would be tough and it was,” said BCGEU president Darryl Walker in a press release. “Our members gave us a mandate and we fought hard during nine months to achieve this deal. We struck four times and implemented an overtime ban to back our proposals. We’re pleased we’ve been able to work productively with the government in recent days to reach this tentative agreement.”

The tentative deal also renews employment security protection for two years, and includes the cancellation of the proposed privatization of the BC Liquor Distribution Branch warehouse and distribution system.

In addition, an overtime ban implemented on Sept. 17, 2012 has been cancelled.

Latest stories