The Ambulance Paramedics of BC (APBC) have reached a tentative collective agreement after months of challenging negotiations after their collective agreement expired on April 1 st , 2022.
“We’ve worked tirelessly with the government and the employer to address our members’ and services most important issues and bring significant improvements to the ambulance service.” says APBC President Troy Clifford. “This new agreement will help secure a significant foundation for improvement for paramedic services in BC and one that acknowledges the uniqueness of our service and challenges for our profession. This is a giant step towards providing the appropriate level of care to our patients across BC.”
The APBC have been sounding the alarm about staffing and recruitment for years, while working through some of the hardest times in their nearly 50-year history. The Covid 19 pandemic, the ongoing toxic drug crisis, and serious under-staffing have pushed ambulance paramedics and emergency dispatchers to the brink. The Ambulance Paramedics of BC have been on the front lines of multiple disasters, while seeing over 30% of ambulance sit empty on a regular basis.
“Our members and service have been undervalued for years, making it impossible to keep up with recruitment and retention of highly trained paramedics and dispatchers. This has affected our ability to respond to people in their time of need. We have been acknowledged appropriately for a long time, and our service has deteriorated as a result. This collective agreement will see a renewed commitment to the ambulance service, to our members, and ultimately, to our patients. We take this acknowledgement as proof that what our members do every day, matters, and that we are valued for the service we provide.”
Details of the new agreement are not being released publicly, as a ratification tour will commence over the following weeks. See joint release between the parties here.
Ambulance Paramedics of BC