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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
In the midst of a series of strike votes, the Union of Northern Workers has reached a tentative agreement with the GNWT for a new four-year collective agreement.

Under the tentative agreement, announced Monday afternoon, the nearly 4,000 government workers represented by the union will receive annual pay increases over four years of one per cent, 1.5 per cent, 2.5 per cent and 3.3 per cent.

The two sides compromised on those pay increases, with union negotiators accepting less than they had originally asked for and the GNWT offering more than they had originally proposed.

The union had originally proposed a two-year collective agreement, expressing some hesitance at committing to a four-year agreement during uncertain economic times when the cost of living can rise unpredictably.

"The union agreed to the employer's position on a four-year collective agreement in the context of an overall package," said UNW president Todd Parsons. "So we were successful in achieving progress on many of the union's priorities."

The GNWT, for now, has backed away on "flex hours" - expanding the standard working hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. to a flexible seven-and-a-half hours between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m.

The union opposed the change on the grounds that it would adversely affect the work/life balance of its members. The GNWT abandoned the proposal for the sake of reaching a tentative agreement but the government still considers flex hours an important issue, said Sheila Bassi-Kellett, deputy minister of the Department of Human Resources.

"We know definitely in smaller communities that an 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule doesn't always reflect the rhythm of community life ... we see it as a big issue," said Bassi-Kellett. "It gets raised to us time and time again by clients, by aboriginal governments, by community members."

After struggling to reach middle ground over a few months, the two sides had agreed on a mediator but couldn't orchestrate everyone's schedules, according to Bassi-Kellett.

"So it was through a mutual decision that the UNW and GNWT said, 'You know, we've got some unfinished business. Let's try to sit down together to seek to work through these issues to see if we can tackle them without the support and involvement of the mediator,'" she said.

The two parties met for two days last week and were able to reach a tentative agreement on the contentious issues by the end of last Friday.

The union had also asked for whistle-blower protection for its members as well as eight-hour rest periods between leaving work and starting a regularly scheduled shift. Bassi-Kellett said the two sides have agreed to collaborate on an interim measure in support of whistle-blower protection within six months of ratification of the agreement.

"Whistle-blower protection is something the UNW felt very strongly about. And wanting to make sure that any staff who feel compelled to raise allegations of wrongdoing feel safe in doing so," she said.

"And this gives the government time, and of course we are working on (terms) and have been for some time ... we're looking at developing a proposal around some potential legislation that we would then raise to the legislative assembly for them to consider," she added.

The GNWT has proposed similar action with regards to the union's request for eight-hour rest periods between shifts, she said.

The tentative agreement has been sent for ratification. If accepted, it will be retroactively effective as of April 1.

Parsons declined to comment on whether the union had been given a strong mandate to strike.

"I'm happy that both teams showed such strong commitment to find solutions to the complexity of the issues," he said. "I look forward to the opportunity to rebuild our relationship."

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