History:
For many years, all labour relations legislation for academic staff in Alberta, including collective bargaining, was under the
Post-Secondary Learning Act (PSLA) (read AASUA's history
here). Throughout that extensive time period, collective bargaining between AASUA and the Governors of the University of Alberta (the employer) was divided into two parts, language and compensation. The compensation items were bargained at one table, and any across the board (ATB) increases were applied to all seven collective agreements. These agreements applied to the seven constituency groups: Academic Faculty, Faculty Service Officers, Librarian, Academic Teaching Staff, Administrative and Professional Officer, Trust Research Academic Staff, and Temporary Librarian, Administrative and Professional Officer. When the parties were unable to reach a Memorandum of Agreement the compensation items in dispute were resolved by final offer selection (FOS) binding arbitration. The decision of the single Arbitrator or Arbitration Board was binding on both parties. This was the dispute resolution process agreed to by both parties and written into the collective agreement. Language for all seven constituency agreements was bargained through Agreement Review Committees (ARC). Constituency agreements had no termination date and could be opened by request by either party. Language changes could be made only if agreed to by both parties and were subject to ratification by the constituency members and the Board of Governors. However, when the parties were unable to reach an agreement, the current language remained in effect. There was no dispute resolution process. Subsequently, language that the Board of Governors felt favoured the employer was retained and similarly, language that favoured the AASUA members, remained unchanged.
Change in Legislation:
In May 2017, the Alberta Government made significant changes to the labour legislation in Alberta’s post-secondary sector. Although the AASUA continues as a statutory corporation under the PSLA, it was also deemed a trade union under the Alberta Labour Relations Code (LRC) that governs collective bargaining. Most importantly, the binding arbitration process in any collective agreement throughout the post-secondary sector was replaced by the mandatory dispute resolution process in the LRC, ie. Strike / Lockout. Voluntary arbitration is still available if the parties agreed to it. Additionally, all collective agreements cannot contain a dispute resolution language in conflict with the LRC and must have a terminal end date. This meant a change in the existing dispute resolution process between the parties and that both compensation and language would be bargained together at the same table. On May 16, 2017, the parties entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) that the next round of bargaining would be a single collective bargaining process. The MOA also required that a single, comprehensive collective agreement would replace the seven academic agreements covering all seven constituencies of academic staff members. In the previous round of bargaining, the seven separate collective agreements were merged into one Collective Agreement with a common section and seven constituent schedules. They are Academic Faculty, Faculty Service Officers, Librarian, Academic Teaching Staff, Administrative and Professional Officer, Trust Research Academic Staff, and Temporary Librarian, Administrative and Professional Officer.
Preparing for Bargaining under the LRC:
In accordance with the LRC, the AASUA and the Board of Governors specifically fall under Division 9.1 “Post–secondary Academic Bargaining” and generally under Division 10 “Collective Bargaining.” To commence bargaining, one of the parties must serve notice to bargain. Either party may serve notice not less than 60 days and not more than 120 days preceding the expiry of the term of collective agreement or within any longer period that may be provided for in the collective agreement. Notice to bargain must be in writing and requires both parties to the collective agreement to commence bargaining. Time lines for the commencement of collective bargaining between AASUA and the Board of Governors are found under Article 2.13 in the Common Agreement: “On or after January 1 preceding the Expiration Date, either party may give the other notice in writing of its intent to commence collective bargaining.” Clearly with an expiry date of June 30, the parties have agreed to a longer notice period than for those provided in the LRC. Consistent with the requirement in the LRC to “bargain collectively in good faith” and “make every reasonable effort to enter into a collective agreement,” Article 2.16 of AASUA’s collective agreement states that “the parties shall bargain in good faith and make every reasonable effort to enter into a renewal collective agreement.” Once the written letter of notice to bargain has been sent, the parties follow the process laid out in article 2.15 of the collective agreement: “on or after February 1st following the written notice in accordance with Article 2.13, the parties shall meet for the purposes of commencing collective bargaining. Within 15 days of that meeting, or such longer period as may be agreed, the parties shall exchange collective bargaining proposals."
Preparing Proposals:
Prior to the exchange of opening proposals there are a number of steps the AASUA takes to prepare its opening proposals. AASUA has a Bargaining Planning Committee (BPC), that is responsible for developing AASUA’s bargaining priorities. The Association’s priorities are a collection of the priorities of each of the seven constituencies. Each constituency holds bargaining priority meetings and conducts member surveys. The BPC collects all the priorities from the individual constituency groups and creates the Association’s priorities. Once the BPC has created those bargaining priorities, AASUA’s Council will then approve the Association's bargaining priorities and AASUA's Executive then develops the bargaining “Mandate.” The Mandate contains both compensation and language changes that the Association would like to achieve during collective bargaining. Once the Association’s negotiations team has received its Mandate, it prepares “opening proposals” that are exchanged with the employer’s opening proposals.
Meetings and Presentations:
After the preliminary meeting(s) are concluded to determine meetings dates, the ground rules and protocols, the parties exchange opening proposals. The opening proposals must contain all proposed amendments to the Collective Agreement and “new” articles and or sub articles. Only with the permission of the other party can additional proposals be allowed once bargaining has commenced. The parties then make presentations regarding their respective proposals, with each party making counter proposals. This process continues for as long as necessary. Ultimately one of two things must happen: 1. All matters have been resolved and agreement has been reached. The parties sign a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) and the tentative MOA is presented to the Board of Governors and to the members of AASUA for ratification; or 2. Unless all matters have been resolved, either party may declare an impasse. In other words, unless everything is agreed to, nothing is agreed to. Once an impasse has been declared, the dispute resolution process in the LRC commences. That dispute resolution process will be the subject of the next entry in this series.