Many members to receive small additional pay increase
Starting with the first pay period after February 1, 2017, most HSA members can expect a pay increase of 0.35% over and above the 5.5% increase rolling out over the life of the current contract.
This increase is the result of the Economic Stability Dividend, a feature of the current agreement which requires the government to increase negotiated wages when provincial economic growth exceeds official forecasts.
In order to activate the ESD, growth for British Columbia must exceed forecasts set by the independent Economic Forecast Council at the start of the fiscal year. The wage increase is calculated based on 50% of any positive difference between the forecast and the November GDP data released by Statistics Canada. Earlier this month Statistics Canada reported that in 2015 the BC economy grew by 3.3%, exceeding the forecast provided by the Economic Forecast Council of 2.6%.
The ESD will benefit all members covered by the Health Science Professionals, the Nurses’ Bargaining Association, the Community Social Services and the Community Bargaining agreements.