PRESS RELEASE
October 21, 2004
For Immediate Release : October 21, 2004
On October 20, 2004, The Canadian Association of Professional Employees (CAPE) received the report of a surprising and disappointing arbitral award for its EC members. An arbitration board headed by Ken Norman has decided to stop just short of the trend of negotiated settlements in the public service and award the over 8,000 economists, sociologists, statisticians and social science support employees of the federal public service increases in pay of:
2.5%, retroactive to June 22, 2003;
2.25% retroactive to June 22, 2004;
2.25% effective June 22, 2005.
CAPE’s pay proposal before the board was for a three-year contract of 3% increases in each year, plus an increment of 3%. Treasury Board’s proposal before the board was for increases of 2.25%, 2% and 2%. Recent well publicized settlements in the public service have been for four-year contracts with successive yearly increases of 2.5%, 2.25%, 2.4% and 2.5%.
“Mr. Norman’s award is truly disappointing.” responded CAPE President Bill Krause “It is so close yet falls short of recent settlements in the public service: we are talking about a difference of 0.15% in one year of a three-year agreement that Mr. Norman knew would not break the piggy bank. It simply gives the appearance that professional groups that seek to resolve impasses by means of arbitration rather than conciliation-strike will be penalized.”
The arbitral award to EC employees also includes: a modest improvement to vacation leave, where the entitlement to 30 days of leave is effective after 28 years of service; and, an entitlement to split parental leave into two separate periods.
The award is final and binding. These changes to the EC collective agreement are in addition to matters settled during mediation, and proposals to which CAPE and Treasury Board agreed at the negotiating table.
A summary of the changes to the EC agreement will be posted on the CAPE website early next week.
October 21, 2004
For Immediate Release : October 21, 2004
On October 20, 2004, The Canadian Association of Professional Employees (CAPE) received the report of a surprising and disappointing arbitral award for its EC members. An arbitration board headed by Ken Norman has decided to stop just short of the trend of negotiated settlements in the public service and award the over 8,000 economists, sociologists, statisticians and social science support employees of the federal public service increases in pay of:
2.5%, retroactive to June 22, 2003;
2.25% retroactive to June 22, 2004;
2.25% effective June 22, 2005.
CAPE’s pay proposal before the board was for a three-year contract of 3% increases in each year, plus an increment of 3%. Treasury Board’s proposal before the board was for increases of 2.25%, 2% and 2%. Recent well publicized settlements in the public service have been for four-year contracts with successive yearly increases of 2.5%, 2.25%, 2.4% and 2.5%.
“Mr. Norman’s award is truly disappointing.” responded CAPE President Bill Krause “It is so close yet falls short of recent settlements in the public service: we are talking about a difference of 0.15% in one year of a three-year agreement that Mr. Norman knew would not break the piggy bank. It simply gives the appearance that professional groups that seek to resolve impasses by means of arbitration rather than conciliation-strike will be penalized.”
The arbitral award to EC employees also includes: a modest improvement to vacation leave, where the entitlement to 30 days of leave is effective after 28 years of service; and, an entitlement to split parental leave into two separate periods.
The award is final and binding. These changes to the EC collective agreement are in addition to matters settled during mediation, and proposals to which CAPE and Treasury Board agreed at the negotiating table.
A summary of the changes to the EC agreement will be posted on the CAPE website early next week.
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