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October 25, 2001
Member investment in BCNU yields high return
For a total bargaining cost of just under $9 million, nurses will receive increased compensation worth $253 million. Fighting for major increases in wages and premiums made our bargaining the most difficult in many years. Because the campaign was so lengthy and intense, a special levy will be needed to replenish the Defense Fund and prepare for the next round
BCNU members’ investment in our union paid off substantially this year. For a total cost for bargaining of just under $9 million in 2000 and 2001, we were able to achieve a total compensation increase worth $253 million over three years.
That is, for an investment of about $346 per member, each member will receive an average return of almost $10,000.
The achievement came because nurses overwhelmingly supported our bargaining committee and our job action. The key factor in that success was the support given to members by stewards, ward reps and other activists, who served as strategic workers and organized activities in support of bargaining and job action in every worksite in the province.
Council decided Bargaining 2001 would be crucial, requiring a more intense fight
BCNU Council made the decision last year that this round of bargaining would be crucial for nurses and our health care system. Council decided it was essential to set a new tone for this round by focusing on significant increases in wages and premiums to address the nursing shortage and pay nurses what they are worth. That focus required a much more intense struggle - one that began by bargaining with one provincial government, carrying on with job action and lobbying through an election campaign, then attempting to bargain with a new government. Because of the length of the campaign and the job action, the costs of bargaining were much larger than anticipated.
Critical work by strategic workers depletes Defense Fund
The Defense Fund, which sat at about $3.1 million at the start of bargaining was depleted. Total defense fund payments will be more than $6 million, leaving a deficit in the Defense Fund of about $3 million. The largest single draw on the Fund was salary reimbursement paid to strategic workers for being off the job, organizing job action and maintaining a high level of union visibility in the workplaces. The efforts of the strategic workers were essential to organize and maintain the overtime ban and the ban on non-nursing duties. There is no way this job action could have been carried on successfully without this work.
In addition there were additional bargaining costs drawn from our operating budgets of $1,090,586 in 2000 and $1,543,538 in 2001.
Measures are needed to replenish Defense Fund
At its meeting October 17, Council determined that measures must be taken to cover the deficit in the Defense Fund and to build it up to $4.5 million, the level it had reached before the 1998 bargaining round.
Re-building the Defense Fund is essential if we are to be in a strong position for the next round of provincial bargaining in 2004.
This $4.5 million level is the greatest amount the fund has ever reached. The BCNU constitution gives Council the authority, after a four-fifths majority vote, to assess a special levy to restore the Defense Fund to the previous maximum. Therefore, Council voted Oct. 17 to impose a special levy of one-quarter of one per cent of members’ gross wages until the Fund is restored to $4.5 million. The levy will be assessed beginning the first pay period after Jan. 1, 2002. We estimate that this special levy would be required for two or three years, depending on the decision reached about the special dues increase.
What about the dues holiday?
As you know, earlier this year Council implemented a special dues increase of one-half of one percent, as authorized by Convention 2000. The increase was collected beginning the last day of the old collective agreement on March 31, 2001, and ends Nov. 6. This increase was implemented to increase defense fund payments in the event of picket lines. Any money left in the fund was to have been refunded to members through a dues holiday.
Because most of our job action did not involve picket lines, defense fund payments to members were relatively small. While the temporary dues increase generated about $2.25 million, the union was able to use only $251,220 of it, leaving almost $2 million. If this money is returned to members through a dues holiday, the dues holiday would be in effect for five weeks.
However, if this money were to be allocated directly to the Defense Fund for the next round of bargaining, we could reduce the time required for the special levy of one quarter percent by about one year. It would then be required for only two years, rather than three.
Therefore, instead of proceeding with an immediate dues holiday, Council has decided to refer this issue to the June 2002 Convention. Convention delegates will determine whether to proceed with the dues holiday at that point or authorize the money to be allocated to the Defense Fund.
More information will be available
Council will be discussing these and other financial issues at its Strategic Planning Session next month, and in other meetings leading up to decisions about our 2002 operating budget. Members of the BCNU executive and senior staff will make presentations at regional meetings in the next few weeks to answer questions.
More information about BCNU’s finances will be provided in the December issue of the Update magazine. For more information please contact your regional chair.
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