Employees of the Lacombe Foundation working at Lacombe Lodge and Eckville Manor House voted overwhelmingly in favour of a two-year collective agreement providing retroactive wage increases and a number of other improvements.
The 80 employees work as lodge attendants, including dietary and laundry staff, cooks, maintenance staff, activity co-ordinators and healthcare aides. They are represented by Retail, Healthcare and Service Employees Union, CLAC Local 301. The union has represented Lacombe Foundation employees since December 2010.
The new contract provides a one per cent wage increase retroactive to January 2022, one-and-a-half percent for 2023 and a wage review for 2024. The agreement also provides clarification of term employees and the creation of a collaborative workforce planning committee, which will discuss strategies and initiatives for the purpose of workforce planning, recruitment and retention. Clarification on shift exchanges, sick leave and vacation time are also included in the settlement. Accruing sick time will now be tied to the number of hours staff members work, not just their full-time equivalency.
“Bargaining for this round of negotiations was prolonged and difficult,” said Juliann Mans, CLAC representative. “Our initial settlement reached in August with the employer was rejected by the membership, and the union bargaining committee went back to the table to secure further improvements. The new agreement was strongly supported by the membership, with 86 per cent voting in favour.”