The AJC has reached a Tentative Collective Agreement 

The AJC Negotiating Team is pleased to inform you that it has reached a tentative agreement with the employer. This afternoon the Governing Council voted to recommend that the Tentative Agreement be put to the membership for a ratification vote. 

What is in the Tentative Agreement? 

If ratified, the tentative agreement will result in a four-year collective agreement (2022-2026) which delivers the following changes for LPs: 

• A transition of all LPs to the Toronto pay grid (“New Single Pay Grid”) effective May 10, 2022. 
• Pay increases totaling 12.5% over four years (13.14% when compounded) which will achieve pay rates for LPs that are comparable to the pay of Ontario government lawyers. 
• A pensionable lump sum allowance of $2,500. 
• Improvements to management leave including: 

o A commitment that all departments and agencies will, in consultation with the AJC, develop and implement a management leave directive within nine months (using the PPSC Management Leave Directive as a template); and 

o A commitment by the employer, outside of the collective agreement, to encourage flexibilities related to hours of work (e.g., time-shifting) in the collective agreement as a means to support normal hours of work and to mitigate management leave where possible; and 

o Movement of the management leave provisions from the hours of work clause (13.01-13.02) to the leave portion of the collective agreement (new 19.24). 

• Clarification to the language in Appendix B of the collective agreement relating to performance pay for lawyers at the LP-01, LP-02 and LP-03 levels. 
• Written confirmation from the employer that the funding for lock-step pay increases comes from a different funding envelope than the performance pay envelope. 
• Recognition of former service with the House of Commons, Senate and other Parliamentary agencies for the purposes of calculating vacation leave entitlement. 
• More flexibility in the taking of bereavement leave and the extension of bereavement leave to situations of miscarriage and stillbirth. 
• Extension of leave for family-related responsibilities to include a terminally-ill family member and increased flexibility in the amount of such leave that may be taken for reasons such as school functions, unforeseeable closures of schools or daycares, and legal appointments. 
• Elimination of volunteer leave (1 day) and an increase of personal leave from 1 to 2 days. 
• Expansion of domestic violence leave to include domestic violence not only by an intimate partner, but also a family member. 
• New leave to engage in traditional indigenous practices. 
• MOUs regarding pregnancy/maternity and parental leave, gender-inclusive language, and pay simplification. 
• Letter of Agreement with the employer regarding telework. 

 

What comes next in the ratification process? 

In the coming days, a full ratification package with the complete tentative agreement will be sent to you and posted to the AJC website here.  Next week, on February 20th and 21st, 2024, we will also host bilingual information sessions to discuss the details of the tentative agreement and answer any questions that you may have.  

Members will then have the chance to vote on whether they approve the tentative agreement. The ratification vote will be held February 23-March 1, 2024. 

This tentative agreement makes significant strides on pay issues, including achieving pay comparability with Ontario government lawyers and transitioning all LPs to a single pay grid. No collective agreement addresses all issues between the parties. Some issues not addressed in this round may be resolved in the next round of collective bargaining (which could commence as early as February 2026), while some may be addressed through other tools at our disposal. That said, this is an important agreement for the AJC, and our success has been hard-won. 

Please keep an eye on your email for the full ratification package and further updates and information. 

 

David McNairn 

AJC President and Chair of the Negotiations Committee