With just over a month before the contract will expire, the City of Saskatoon and members of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 615 have ratified their collective agreement. The contract is for April of 2017 to the end of December this year. City Council unanimously voted in favour of the agreement on Monday.

ATU Local 615 President, Jim Yakubowski, says over that 2 years and 9 months, the overall wage increase is 3.75 per cent. The first 0.5 per cent begins in December of 2017, then 1.5 per cent in July of 2018 and 1.75 per cent effective July 1st of 2019. The workers will receive these increases in back pay. Yakubowski says it’s important to note that not unlike any other bargaining sessions, neither party receives all their expectations.

The next steps in 2020 will be for the negotiating committee to seek direction and guidance from its members and then work on some dates for bargaining with the City, however Yakubowski doesn’t think there will be any negotiations in the near future. He adds there are still some outstanding collective agreements the City has with other unions that have yet to be ratified.