Collective Bargaining

This page provides regular updates during active collective bargaining periods. Keyano College respects the bargaining process and is committed to keeping the College community up to date during the negotiation of collective agreements with its unions.

The information shared here will align with the collective bargaining process and our obligations and responsibilities under the Labour Relations Code and Post-Secondary Learning Act.

What is Collective Bargaining?

Postsecondary institutions in Canada have collective agreements with their faculty and staff. Collective bargaining is the process of negotiating these agreements.

The Labour Relations Code and Post-Secondary Learning Act guide Alberta's post-secondary institutions' labour relations and collective bargaining.

 

Bargaining groups at Keyano College

CUPE Collective Bargaining Updates

The College’s bargaining committee met with CUPE’s committee to discuss initial bargaining proposals. This is the first meeting between the College and CUPE in this round of negotiations. The College's bargaining committee is pleased with the tone and demeanor during this initial meeting.

During the meeting, the College’s bargaining committee presented objectives for this round of collective bargaining. These objectives include enhancing current processes within the collective agreement and promoting long-term labour stability. These objectives are intended to strengthen the College's ability to effectively tackle challenges arising within the sector as the Canadian post-secondary landscape faces uncertainties and disruptions.

The bargaining committees for the College and CUPE met on November 6 to continue collective bargaining.

The College is committed to advancing the bargaining process, and to that end, came prepared with several proposals and sign-offs for articles of the collective agreement. The committees discussed those proposals and successfully signed off on nine articles of the collective agreement. 

The parties are next scheduled to meet on December 9. The College is pleased with the tone of discussions with CUPE to date, and looks forward to continuing discussions in December. 

The bargaining committees for both the College and CUPE Local 2157 met to continue collective bargaining on December 9, 2025.

The parties had positive discussions, and were able to reach agreement on more articles in the Collective Agreement. This builds on the positive work from the last bargaining session held in November. The committees will next meet in January 2026.

The College’s committee looks forward to further progress and productive discussions in the new year.

The bargaining committees for the College and CUPE Local 2157 met to continue collective bargaining on January 22 and 23, 2026.

The committees were able to have meaningful discussions that narrowed the focus of several outstanding items. The parties will next meet virtually on February 20, with additional meeting dates to be scheduled shortly thereafter.

The College’s committee is pleased with the positive tone of these discussions and looks forward to continuing the momentum in our upcoming sessions.

The bargaining committees for the College and CUPE Local 2157 met virtually on March 23, 2026, to continue collective bargaining. The committees engaged in meaningful, though difficult, discussions that helped narrow the focus and align on several outstanding items.

While a significant amount of work remains, both parties have committed to two further sets of meetings. The next session is a two-day, in-person meeting scheduled for April 20 and 21, 2026. The College’s committee is optimistic that the parties can address the remaining larger items during these upcoming sessions to determine a path toward an agreement.

The bargaining committees for the College and CUPE were scheduled to meet on April 20 and 21, 2026.

CUPE’s bargaining team requested to cancel the two bargaining dates. The committees are now scheduled to meet on May 4 and 5, 2026. The College hopes for productive discussions in May, and that both parties will be able to catch up and move forward towards reaching a collective agreement.

This is an update about the status of collective bargaining between Keyano College and CUPE Local 2157.

Both parties reconvened on May 4, 2026. This was the first time that the parties had met since March 2026. The parties were scheduled to meet in April, but, at CUPE’s request, those meetings were cancelled.

The parties had planned to meet for two full days on May 4 and 5. Early in the May 4 meeting, it became clear to the College that appointing a mediator would be a constructive next step. The College has therefore decided to apply for informal mediation.

At this stage, several differences remain between the parties’ proposals, particularly regarding financial requests. CUPE has most recently tabled proposals which include several significant financial requests. From the College’s perspective, these proposals do not fully reflect the broader post-secondary settlement landscape or the institution's current financial realities. The College continues to be focused on reaching an agreement that is fair, responsible, and sustainable over the long term.

The College remains committed to a respectful and collaborative bargaining process and to ensuring that negotiations conclude in a timely manner. We are mindful that the previous round of bargaining lasted for almost four years, up until March 2024. This delay had several impacts, including delays in wage increases and retroactive salary payments to our valued employees. We believe it is in everyone’s interest to conclude bargaining in a timely manner and to continue moving the institution forward together. We also recognize that most of the post-secondary institutions across the province have completed this round of bargaining with their support staff.

The College’s bargaining committee remains committed to working diligently and in good faith with CUPE Local 2157 and to maintaining an open and respectful communication throughout this process.

Further updates will be shared as they become available.

KCFA Collective Bargaining Updates

Keyano College is delighted to announce that the Collective Agreement with the Keyano College Faculty Association (KCFA) is now ratified for another 4-year term (2024-2028). 

The negotiation process commenced in Fall 2024, with bargaining committees from both the College and the KCFA engaging in meaningful discussions over several months. These negotiations addressed critical areas including compensation, benefits, and workload. The parties presented their respective concerns and proposals, ultimately reaching an agreement that they believed would provide stability and serve the best interests of the college, faculty, and students. 

The newly ratified Collective Agreement will be posted promptly. Faculty members seeking clarifications or information regarding the new Collective Agreement are encouraged to contact their Leaders or the KCFA Executives. 

The College acknowledges the joint efforts of both its own and the KCFA’s bargaining committees for reaching this new Collective Agreement. This successful round of bargaining speaks to the parties' open and collaborative relationship. 

Keyano College has commenced collective bargaining with the Keyano College Faculty Association (KCFA) and wants to keep our employees and other vital partners informed about this round of bargaining.

The bargaining teams of Keyano and KCFA met on September 20, 2024. The parties exchanged non-monetary proposals. Bargaining was productive, and discussions between the parties were positive. Both parties are scheduled to meet again in December 2024, and the College is looking forward to further positive and productive talks.

Keyano articulated clearly what we see as specific challenges that will inform this round of collective bargaining with the KCFA. Those include challenges related to our growth as a college and the need for flexibility to address that growth. We have seen significant growth largely due to increased international student enrolment. The College welcomes this growth and hopes that it will continue sustainably. Given several external factors, however, such as the Federal Government’s new restrictions regarding international student visas, the sustainability of that growth is unclear. 

Thank you for your attention to these critical updates. We are committed to keeping you informed as negotiations progress.

The College’s Bargaining Committee and the KCFA’s Committee met on December 18 and 19. The parties discussed proposals on several non-monetary articles in the Collective Agreement. Although there were some divergent views, the parties were able to agree on and sign off on a significant number of proposals. The parties are scheduled to meet for more bargaining sessions in January 2025.

The bargaining committees for Keyano College and the KCFA met on January 15 and 16, 2025, to proceed with collective bargaining. During these meetings, the committees discussed several proposals and successfully signed off on an article of the Collective Agreement. While discussions on other proposals are ongoing, the College’s committee is looking forward to continuing productive talks with the Faculty Association’s committee.

This round of collective bargaining is taking place in the context of several challenges facing the College. This includes the challenges posed by the Federal Government’s implementation of caps on international student visas, which will impact student headcount and programming. Despite these significant challenges, we remain committed to providing quality education and supporting our employees, industry, and community partners. As we have done in the past, we will continue to inform the College’s position and challenges as we move forward in this process.

The committees will reconvene in late February.

Keyano College and the KCFA met on April 10 and 11 to continue collective bargaining discussions. To date, the parties have been able to reach an agreement on a significant number of articles in the collective agreement. Discussions regarding the remaining items have been productive, with both parties engaging in constructive dialogue.

The College will continue to provide updates on the collective bargaining process.