After six months of negotiations and with the help of a provincial conciliator, members of the Association of University of New Brunswick Teachers have ratified a new collective agreement. The four-year contract, retroactive to July 1, 2001, covers the union's 600 members in Fredericton, Saint John, Bathurst and Moncton.

An improved wage structure, based on a competitive adjustment formula, is currently expected to increase salaries and salary scales by approximately 2.5 per cent per year. The salary model relates UNB salaries to the average salary for faculty members at McMaster, Queen's, Ottawa, Windsor, Carleton, York, Saskatchewan, Victoria, Manitoba, Calgary, Dalhousie, Regina and Memorial. An additional average of one per cent per year competitive supplement will be provided to bring existing UNB salaries more in line with the group average.

Esam Hussein, a professor of mechanical engineering and president of the teachers' association said, "The goal of AUNBT in this round of negotiations was to maintain UNB's status as a national university by ensuring competitive salaries and comparable workloads."

Hussein added he was particularly proud of new or revised provisions on the ownership of intellectual property, promotion assessment for faculty, and collegial rights, "as they demonstrate how we can work together to ensure high-quality education and research at UNB."

AUNBT has been a certified bargaining agent for almost 20 years.