Expedited hearing granted as nurses union slams UCP over contract-talk meddling

An expedited hearing on whether or not to delay an arbitration on nurses’ wages has been granted after a union representing Alberta nurses raised concerns Tuesday that the UCP government was meddling in contract negotiations.

The Alberta Labour Relations Board agreed Wednesday morning to an expedited hearing to address the United Nurses of Alberta’s application to “quash” the arbitrator’s decision to postpone the arbitration hearing, the union said in a news release.

This expedited hearing comes after a three-year agreement was signed with AHS, which contained a two-year pay freeze and wage negotiations to reopen in the third year on Feb. 15, 2019.

Wage negotiations were underway, but because no agreement was made by March 31, an arbitration hearing was set for Monday.

Before it began, AHS contacted the arbitrator and asked for a postponement, citing the government wished to consult with stakeholders.

The arbitrator granted the request for a delay beyond the date specified in UNA’s provincial collective agreement.

UNA says the decision went “beyond the powers granted to arbitrators in Alberta law” in that the labour relations code forbids an arbitrator from “amending or changing the terms or conditions of the collective agreement.”

UNA also believes the actions of AHS and other employers involved in the negotiation are in bad faith and as such, the union has filed grievances against them.

“The bargaining representatives of our members’ employers are obviously not making the decisions in bargaining as required by law, the Government of Alberta is,” said David Harrigan, UNA’s labour relations director said on Tuesday.

The hearing is now scheduled for May 31 and AHS has until May 24 to respond to the application.

UNA’s current agreement, which expires on March 31, 2020, is with Alberta Health Services, Covenant Health, Lamont Health Care Centre and the Bethany Group in Camrose.