Alberta Health Services ratifies deal with union for 19,000 health workers

The deal covers 19,000 Alberta Health Services employees who work in areas such as pharmacy, laboratory, diagnostic imaging, rehabilitation services, social work and emergency medical services. (Photo: Alberta Health Services website)

EDMONTON – Alberta’s provincial health authority has ratified a three-year collective agreement with the Health Sciences Association of Alberta.

The deal covers 19,000 Alberta Health Services employees who work in areas such as pharmacy, laboratory, diagnostic imaging, rehabilitation services, social work and emergency medical services.

It includes a salary freeze for two years with a requirement to negotiate wages in the third year, and also contains improvements to employee benefits and additional scheduling flexibility.

The union voted to ratify the deal last week.

In a news release, the union said its members recognize the province’s financial situation and that members felt that improvements to benefits and work-life balance were priorities.

The term of the agreement runs from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2020.