UNA Local 2 members joined nurses around the province on a Saturday in January for Day of Action rallies. (rdnewsNOW/Ian Gustafson)

By Josh Hall | @Vancan19

20 per cent raise over term of deal

Alberta nurses overwhelmingly ratify 4-year agreement

Apr 3, 2025 | 10:57 AM

Alberta’s nurses have ratified a four-year collective agreement paying them nearly a 20 per cent raise over the term of the deal.

The new agreement, which nurses affirmed overwhelmingly, makes workers in this province the highest paid anywhere in the country.

The United Nurses of Alberta (UNA) noted 95.74 per cent of those who voted were in favour, with all 124 locals in favour. Voter turnout was over 77 per cent.

The deal also includes significant increases in premium pay and other benefits.

“This round of negotiations was about respect, retention and recruitment,” said UNA President Heather Smith. “When UNA members voted against ratifying a settlement that had been recommended by a mediator last October, they spoke clearly, and we listened. The result was the agreement ratified yesterday.”

The agreement takes effect retroactive to March 31, 2024 and will expire April 1, 2028.

The new agreement includes:

• An immediate pay increase of up to 15 per cent
• An overall increase of approximately 20 per cent for all affected members
• Annual pay increases of 3 per cent in each year of the new agreement
• A revised annual pay grid with pay increases of 4 per cent between each step
• Pay increases retroactive to April 1, 2024
• Significant monetary increases for on-call, charge pay, and other premiums
• Full reimbursement of professional registration and liability fees
• New measures to ensure safe staffing
• A commitment by the province to provide presumptive coverage for PTSD and psychological injuries
• Job security during health care restructuring
• Assistance for rural health care staffing

Meantime, Alberta’s President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Finance, Nate Horner, said Thursday the government has tremendous respect for nurses, without whom the health care system, “could not thrive.”

“This new agreement places Alberta’s registered nurses in a strong and competitive position in the marketplace, which will support recruitment and retention,” said Horner.

“All of these initiatives will hopefully reduce the need for overtime, agency staffing and the need to recruit internationally educated nurses. Investment into recruitment for rural and remote areas will triple, to more than $22 million per year, attracting nurses in all communities. Both parties agreed to address safe staffing processes, which are now contained in the agreement.”

Horner also noted the Graduate Nursing Transition Pilot Program is committed to hiring 1,000 new nursing graduates every year, throughout the term of the contract.

This means, he said, almost every nurse who graduates from a post-secondary institution in the province could have a full-time position following graduation.

NDP Shadow Minister for Health, Sarah Hoffman, added Thursday her congratulations to nurses, thanking them for their “selfless commitment.”

“The resolve of members of the United Nurses of Alberta to get a deal that comes with the respect they have deserved for a long time now is awesome,” Hoffman said.

“We will continue to fight for you and all health care professionals.”

The United Nurses of Alberta represents more than 35,000 members province-wide.