B.C. gets 3 deals offering economic growth-sharing dividend to public workers

VICTORIA – The B.C. government has reached tentative contract agreements with 51,000 public sector workers, giving the province five years of labour peace and workers a benefit-sharing deal.

The three deals cover the B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union — about 11,000 people who work in social services, and another 15,000 community health employees.

Finance Minister Mike de Jong says the agreements are novel because they offer public-sector workers a chance to share in the benefits of stronger economic growth.

The deals, reached four months before the current contracts expire, cover a five-year term and an economic growth-sharing dividend linked to the province’s gross domestic product.

Premier Christy Clark says the agreements will help her government keep its commitment to balance the budget.

The BCGEU says the deals offer job protection and wage increases in four of the five years.