ESPANOLA—The Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board (DSB) has reached new contract agreements with two of its employee groups.
“Both deals have been ratified by the employee groups and our board,” stated Fern Dominelli, chief administrative officer of the DSB, last Friday.
As reported in last week’s edition of the Recorder, the DSB board had earlier ratified a new contract with Canadian Union of Public Employee members (who ratified the deal last week). The CUPE members are made up of inside employees such as those with Ontario Works, Social Housing and Child Care and custodians, said Mr. Dominelli.
The collective agreement between DSB and CUPE 4705 employees had expired on December 31, 2014. The new contract is for four years, and runs to December 31, 2018.
A new deal has also been ratified between the DSB and Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) Local 670, Patient Transfer Services employees. This is a brand new collective agreement involving employees in the pilot program the DSB has been involved in through the North East Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN).
“The four-year agreement agreement has been reached with CUPE, and runs from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018,” said Mr. Dominelli. The employees will receive a two percent increase in salary as of January 1, 2015, two percent increase as of January 1, 2016, a 1.4 percent increase on January 1, 2017 and 1.4 percent as of January 1, 2018.”
There are is improvements in language changes for the employees including a small increase in life insurance maximums from $200,000 to $225,000, continued Mr. Dominelli.
For the patient transfer services employees (represented by OPSEU), the new deal is also for four years, running from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018. “They will receive the same increase in salary as the CUPE employees, which will mean they will see an increase to $14.85, from $14.28 before the increase in salaries took place,” said Mr. Dominelli.
“This is a brand new collective agreement,” noted Mr. Dominelli. “Because this is a pilot temporary funded program with one time (government) money, and if the funding does not continue we (DSB) will have to give the employees a minimum of 30 days notice. As of today the funding ends as of March 31, 2016.”
