After lengthy negotiations, a four-year deal has been reached between Brandon University and its professors.
School community members received a notice Thursday that the Brandon University Faculty Association (BUFA) and the Board of Governors each ratified a new four-year collective agreement.
The renewed deal covers April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2027 and was approved by the board Wednesday. The faculty association held a multi-day ratification vote that saw 95 per cent of its members voting in favour of the deal.
BUFA represents around 260 full-time faculty members and 90 contract staff.
In February, the union said negotiations were at a standstill following a dispute over language used in the previous collective agreement between faculty members and the university.
On Jan. 19, 2023, BUFA members ratified their negotiating team’s mandate to bargain for better equity, diversity, inclusion, decolonization and Indigenization language. They have also been pushing for a better workload, compensation, academic freedom and governance, according to the union.
BUFA had previously set a deadline of March 31 to have a deal in place before a strike would occur.
According to the release, the new deal includes wage increases of 2.5 per cent, 2.75 per cent, three per cent and three per cent over the four years. It will also include a lump-sum payment of $1,800 for full-time faculty members and $900 for part-time staff.
The new collective agreement also “includes language that more equitably supports both professional and professorial members, while articulating important principles around academic freedom and detailing processes of collegial governance,” the university said in its release to the campus community.
While the new collective agreement will officially be signed in May, it is already in effect following ratification.
CTV News reached out to the university and the union for comment on the deal.