PTSU bargaining team makes progress towards first Collective Agreement with UNB.
The bargaining team for the PTSU, PSAC local 60551, met with representatives of the University of New Brunswick in four days of conciliation between August 26th-29th. The team is pleased to report that conciliation was very productive.
On August 13th, the union team held a pre-conciliation caucus in Fredericton to brief the new PSAC negotiator on the outstanding bargaining issues and to discuss strategy for conciliation. While it was clear that there are many difficult outstanding issues to address in bargaining, the team elected to focus on articles where there seemed to be some common ground with the employer in an effort to change the tone of bargaining and establish some forward momentum for future conciliation meetings.
The strategy worked. While this round of conciliation began slowly with both sides tabling language on less contentious issues, negotiations gained momentum throughout the week as both sides made good faith efforts to navigate differences. When conciliation ended on August 29th, the Union and Employer teams had engaged and come to some agreement on eight articles, including issues as varied as Management Rights, Legal Representation, and Sick Leave. On parting ways, both sides agreed that the round was very productive.
Whatever factor or factors are animating the improved tone at the bargaining table, the team hopes that the more positive tone continues into the next round of conciliation, scheduled for September 10th-12th. We will provide another update after that session.
In the meantime, your bargaining team thanks you for your continued support and solidarity. You are our strength at the table!
In solidarity,
Your PTSU Bargaining Team
Chris Miller (PTSU President)
John Hayden
Sharon Smith
Dawn Dignam (in absentia/on leave)
Silja Freitag (PSAC Researcher)
John Eustace (PSAC Negotiator)
Raphaëlle Valay-Nadeau (PSAC Regional Representative)