Yellowknife (Feb 18/05) - Members of the Union of Northern Workers can now expect gender equality on the job at Yellowknife Catholic schools after approving a new collective agreement last week.

Jean-Francois Des Lauriers: Workers at Yellowknife Catholic schools will get a six per cent raise over two years, gender equality on the job and more vacation travel assistance under a new collective agreement.

The agreement between YCS and UNW Local 30, which includes secretaries, maintenance workers, classroom assistants and early childhood workers in the district, contains a job evaluation system to ensure women and men are paid equally.

A Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and GNWT study shows that women are paid 20 per cent less than men for doing the same job, says Jean-Francois Des Laurier, regional executive vice president with PSAC North.

The new evaluation system will ensure that doesn't happen anymore, he said.

"People should be paid according to the work they do and they should be paid proportionally to each other."

Mike Huvenaars, YCS representative, said the change didn't arise from complaints over inequality, but was added to eliminate possible biases.

"There's no way to prove that the old system was gender neutral," said Huvenaars.

The collective agreement, which is retroactive to July 1, 2004 and will be effective until 2006, includes a six per cent pay raise for the 55 union members.

The workers also qualify for $1,300 in annual vacation assistance, up from $1,000, as well as an increase in their pension plan. Both changes put workers' benefits on par with NWT teachers.

It took nearly a year and two rounds of negotiations to hammer out the agreement, but both groups said they were pleased with the results.

"The negotiations went very well. There was a co-operative spirit on both sides," said Huvenaars.

"It's a good agreement and we're happy with it," said Des Lauriers.

The collective agreement was ratified Feb. 10.