After over 48 hours of voting and 1,661 votes cast, the CUPE 3912 Dalhousie membership has voted to ratify the Tentative Agreement recommended by the Dalhousie Negotiating Committee.
As of Monday, November 14th, we are back to work. The Dalhousie Administration has agreed that contacts for PTAs and TAs will remain unaffected and the full salary will be paid. Markers/Demonstrators will be paid for hours worked. All contracts this term will be paid at the rate indicated in the now ratified Tentative Agreement.
As a result of our hard work and conviction, we earned a collective agreement that grows base PTA wages 23.3%, TA wages 23.1%, and Mark/Demo wages 44.5%. The difference between Mark/Demo wages and TA wages has shrunk from 32% to 20% weakening the Mark/Demo loophole. Lastly, everyone who worked in the last 2 years has earned some back pay to compensate for the pay freeze. It is possible that Dalhousie’s payroll may take a month or two to implement the new rates. We will be pushing them to make sure everyone is paid what they’re owed.
However, this vote does not mean we are done. There are several goals that we did not achieve in this round of bargaining. The next two years leading up to the end of this contract are more important than ever. If we want to remove the Marker/Demonstrator position, we will need more evidence and more voices to present at bargaining next time.
We, as a union, are stronger than ever and it’s up to us to spend the next two years solidifying that position so we can get even more next time.
Thank you all for your amazing work. We could not have achieved what we did without you.