Background Information:
· HDEAA (as part of EWAO-ATEO – the Education Workers Alliance of Ontario) has negotiated a tentative Central Agreement.
· This tentative agreement was reached when the negotiating team for EWAO felt they had the best possible deal that could be agreed to by both sides
· The next step is for EWAO member unions to take ratification votes. HDEAA is currently bringing this tentative Central Agreement (offer) to its members to vote on
· Ratification is the process by which a union obtains the formal consent from the membership to a tentative agreement by holding a vote.
· If members accept this proposed tentative central agreement, a new collective agreement will be signed.
· 5 of the 7 EWAO member unions need to vote to accept this tentative agreement for it to be ratified.
The following will be in place if this tentative Central Agreement is accepted:
Wage increase
· HDEAA members will receive an increase of $1.00 per hour per year for 4 years from 2022 to 2026 (this will result in retro pay for hours already worked)
Benefits funding
· EWAO currently has the highest funding among support workers in the education sector
· EWAO & the CTA could not come to an agreement about the benefit funding
· EWAO proposed going to arbitration (as it is a well established dispute resolution process) however the province (CTA) would not consider this
· EWAO unions subsequently took a strike vote and were given a strong strike mandate from their members.
· The province then agreed to allow the benefits’ funding concern togo to binding arbitration.
· The independent arbitrator will hear both sides’ position on the benefit funding and decide on how it should be funded, which each side must follow.
· We have been told that OECTA is in the same situation (high benefit funding currently) and have also agreed in their deal to go to binding arbitration for a decision on funding going forward.
· Remedy Payment- as the result of the charter challenge(Bill 124), HDEAA members will receive and extra .75% increase for the 2019-2020 school year, the 2020-2021 school year and an extra 2.75% for 2021-22 school year (this will result in retro pay for hours already worked)
· Family Emergency Day- HDEAA will have the right to negotiate an extra family emergency day with the HDSB
· Local Bargaining- it is agreed that if this tentative agreement is ratified, then EWAO unions will not strike locally
If this tentative agreement is not accepted:
· All agreed to terms mentioned above go back to the central table for discussion.
The decision to vote against this tentative central agreement is a vote against the offer as a whole, not just one area of concern.