To All PSAC-YEU Local Y011 Yukon University Employees Union members:
Filed for Conciliation
Strike Votes Coming
Your bargaining team has filed for conciliation. Doing so moves the process along and sends a clear message to the employer that we are not willing to settle for what they have offered us.
The primary issue that remains outstanding is wages. The table below shows you the gap between us.
| Union’s Proposal | Employer’s Proposal | |
| July 1, 2024 | 12% | 4.25% |
| July 1, 2025 | 4.5% | 3.5% |
| July 1, 2026 | 4.5% | 3% |
We believe that we deserve more than what the employer has offered.
- We saw the Yukon Teachers’ Association get a 3-year agreement with increases of 8.15%, 3% and 3%. This is over 3.25% more over the life of the agreement than the employer’s offer.
- We received lower increases than other public-sector groups in the Territory during the last round, including Yukon Government employees.
- Inflation and the cost of living are high. Our real wages have gone down over the past years.
We brought many issues to the table and have resolved approximately twenty items. However, we don’t believe that we can resolve the remaining issues without your support. You can see all such issues in a table below. Wages are our top priority, but we remain committed to pushing forward on the issues.
Conciliation involves bringing in a neutral person whose job will be to try to assist to get a deal. The conciliator cannot compel either side to take any specific action, but they will work to try to help the sides bridge the gap. Prior to conciliation, we will be organizing strike votes. Your support will be necessary to get a good deal – without a strong mandate from members, we won’t be able to make the gains that we deserve.
We will be organizing strike preparation sessions in the coming weeks to answer questions related to the process and what to expect moving forward.
Finally, the bargaining team wants to thank MaryAnn Ferguson for her work through the process. MaryAnn is retiring and will be stepping down from the team. Her insight and her work has been critically important and we all wish her the best.
Please continue to stay informed and speak with any team member if you have questions.
Your Bargaining Team:
Amanda Graham
Jennifer Harkes
Michael Ross
Stacy Savage
Seth Sazant, PSAC Negotiator
Lisa Vollans-Leduc, VP, YEU
| Article/Issue | Union Position | Employer Position |
| 15 – Staffing | Minimize the hiring of casuals, terms and sessionals where it can reasonably be determined that there will be sufficient ongoing work for permanent employees. | No change |
| 38 – Vacation Leave | Reduce the years of service to accrue each additional step of vacation leave. | Reduce the years of service to obtain nine weeks of vacation leave only. |
| 50 – Northern Travel Assistance | Increase from $2,750 to $3,500 | No change |
| New – Telework | Requests for telework not to be unreasonably denied | No change |
| New – Health Mandates | Allow employees to liquidate any paid leave before being put on leave without pay in the event of a health mandate | No change |
| Wages | 3-year agreement: 12%, 4.5%, 4.5% | 3-year agreement: 4.25%, 3.5%, 3% |
| Sessional Instructors’ Stipends | Increase to $6,415 and $7,806 and apply economic increases through the life of the agreement | Increase to $6,250 and $7,000 |