Wednesday, February 23, 2022
Negotiations for the next contract for AMAPCEO members in the Ontario Public Service (OPS) will begin on Tuesday, March 1, the union announced today.
On Tuesday, the OPS Bargaining Team, accompanied by AMAPCEO leadership, staff, and legal counsel, will meet virtually with representatives from the OPS Employer to share opening statements and begin to work through initial proposals.
“We’re ready,” OPS Bargaining Team Chair Paula Wallingford said. “Over the last few months, the team has been hard at work, getting ready for Tuesday and the negotiations ahead. We’re looking forward to rolling up our sleeves and sitting down with the Employer.”
This round of bargaining will be conducted under the dark shadow of Bill 124, the government’s unconstitutional wage-restraint legislation that affects more than one million of Ontario’s public servants. But AMAPCEO President Dave Bulmer said that won’t stop the union from seeking other wins on behalf of its 14,500 members in the OPS.
“While Bill 124 unfairly limits our ability to seek increases more than one per cent, wages are only one area in which we can seek improvements,” Bulmer said. “But if we are to make gains in other areas, it is critical that all AMAPCEO members support our OPS Bargaining Team.”
Next week, AMAPCEO members in the OPS are encouraged to how their support of the OPS Bargaining Team by:
- attending a virtual Town Hall on Monday, February 28 at noon; and
- wearing navy blue on Tuesday, March 1 and submitting a photo of yourself in your AMAPCEO navy to bargaining@amapceo.on.ca
The current OPS Collective Agreement ends March 31, 2022, and after that, existing terms and conditions remain frozen in place until a new collective agreement comes into effect.