Preparing for Collective Bargaining at SFU

Later this spring, collective agreements between SFU and the unions and APSA who represent faculty and staff across the university will begin to expire. 

This means that as early as the spring of 2025, collective bargaining will begin for many employee groups under the Province’s mandate. But what is collective bargaining, and how does the process work? 

Public Sector Employers’ Council and the Mandate  

Public universities in British Columbia are part of the Provincial Public Sector and are defined by the Public Sector Employers Act. This Act created the Public Sector Employers’ Council also known as PSEC.  

Each bargaining round, PSEC implements the government’s bargaining mandate that applies to all public sector employers with unionized employees. Every bargaining mandate has to balance the Province’s fiscal situation, overall economic conditions, and the need to support strong services for people. Government also recognizes the importance of fair and reasonable compensation for workers in the provincial public sector.

The mandate provides employers with direction such as the maximum allowable general wage increases, term, and other potential funding allocations to support mutually beneficial outcomes for both parties.  

The government’s priorities in negotiations are linked to the mandate letters issued by the Minster of Post-Secondary and Future Skills to all institutions. These letters outline the expectations for delivery of educational services in the universities sector that are accounted for in the Province’s fiscal plan. The government and provincial public sector employers spend nearly 60% of the Province's budget on total compensation.  

Negotiations across the public sector under the 2025 mandate are getting underway and more details will become available as they progress.

Preparing for the Collective Bargaining Process 

Collective bargaining can begin up to 4 months prior to the expiration of a collective agreement and when either the employer or the union/professional association issues notice of intent to negotiate a new agreement. The parties can begin bargaining at any point after the notice of intent.  

As the university awaits the 2025 PSEC mandate, the People Strategies Labour Relations team, along with Faculty Relations who oversee bargaining with the SFU Faculty Association, have begun negotiation preparation.  

These preparations often include hiring an external lead negotiator to represent the university during negotiations. The appointment of an external negotiator is a common professional practice as it brings an objective, third-party lens to the bargaining procedures, and protects internal employees from being a target during contentious negotiations.  

The negotiator brings negotiating expertise and provincial post-secondary context to ensure that the university adheres to negotiating standards and legal obligations for all parties involved. Appointing an external negotiator also helps to protect and preserve relationships between the people representing the university and those representing unions and professional association, as negotiations can be challenging. 

The university also sets up bargaining committees made up of SFU faculty and staff who work closely with members of the bargaining unit. Selection of these members aims to ensure a variety of perspectives from different faculties, campuses and both academic and administrative units are reflected.  

The university also welcomes subject matter experts to advise the bargaining committee on matters such as organizational health, payroll, IT services and more to inform the impact and implementation of changes to collective agreements. 

As bargaining progresses, we are committed to keeping you updated on progress. Go to https://www.sfu.ca/dashboard/faculty-staff/bargaining.html for the latest bargaining updates or FAQs.