HSAA wins precedent setting decision on pensions

Yesterday we informed all HSAA lab members and now we are thrilled to share the news with the entire membership… your union has won a major decision at the Alberta Labour Relations Board (ALRB).
 

The ALRB has rejected DynaLIFE’s attempt to take pensions away from our lab members being transitioned from Alberta Precision Labs to the private company. Put simply, together we have successfully defeated an attempt by a for-profit health-care corporation to undermine our benefits and the rights of union workers in Alberta.
 

We know this transition has been hard on our lab workers. Thank you for continuing to show up for Albertans as the turmoil of this politically driven transition played out. Thank you for continuing to have faith in our union as the labour relations work went on behind the scenes. Fighting for union values takes courage from all of us to work through the tough times knowing that success is not guaranteed. We hope that the precedent this victory holds for all members, and all public sector workers in Alberta, helps validate the struggle so many of you are enduring.
 

When it was announced DynaLIFE would be taking over community lab services, both the company and the current government said our members would be kept whole when it came to our collective bargaining agreement – including pensions. Once we engaged in the transition process, it became clear DynaLIFE had no intention of keeping its word.
 

The company recently asked the ALRB to intervene and hear its case that it couldn’t provide the pensions members are entitled to and we have bargained for because pensions are “not a fit”, “unsuitable” and “impossible” for a private, for-profit company. This is particularly ironic given DynaLIFE’s largest shareholder is an Ontario based pension fund!
 

As soon as we heard about the company’s attempt to abdicate its responsibility, we assembled our team of experts to defend your rights. We prepared our case and testified before the ALRB. The process wrapped up late Wednesday when the ALRB ruled it would not intervene in transition talks on DynaLIFE’s behalf. The ALRB stated DynaLIFE was aware of its obligations when it signed the deal to take over lab services. It also dismissed the company’s claim that the existing pension agreement was not suitable for a private company.
 

This decision will send shockwaves through boardrooms of private health-care providers. It sets the precedent – all private companies, whether it’s labs, ambulance, homecare, long-term care, mental health and addictions or any of the other public sector services this government is trying to privatize, must respect collective bargaining agreements and cannot profit from watering down your pensions.
 

So, what happens next?
 

We are now working to secure support for DynaLIFE employees to stay with the Local Authorities Pensions Plan (LAPP). A decision hopefully will be made soon. If LAPP members decide against taking on DynaLIFE, the ALRB has determined the company must seek out a similar pension arrangement and HSAA must be engaged in that process. This is all because of the strong collective agreements we negotiated long before the transition.
 

There is more work to do but we can not overstate the importance of this development. Our mandate is to protect you and your financial futures and that’s exactly what we’ve done. Making sure you have the best collective agreement and that employers meet their obligations is what we do. And we will continue doing it for all members being threatened with transition to a private employer.
 

We will be reaching out to all of you in the near future to talk about the privatization threats facing us and what we can do together.
 

This was a true fight to defend all of our rights.
 

We are a diverse union that faces a wide range of challenges. Solidarity is what unites us – we stand with each other because an injury to one is an injury to all.
 

We will continue to find the strength to meet any challenge we face because we know we can overcome them, together.
 

In solidarity,
 

Mike Parker, President
Leanne Alfaro, Vice-President