Association of Employees
Supporting Education Services

The bargaining process begins with the election of a Negotiation Committee, which includes representatives from all AESES districts. To ensure all interest groups are adequately represented, the Executive may appoint up to twelve additional members. The AESES Labour Relations Officer also serves on this committee.

The AESES membership is then solicited for suggested proposals for changes to the collective agreement. These proposals, along with those from the Labour Relations Officer and the Contract Administrator, are compiled and presented to the committee for consideration.

All member-submitted proposals are automatically brought forward as formal motions for discussion and voting. The committee also considers proposals submitted by the Labour Relations Officer, the Contract Administrator, and committee members themselves. Once each proposal has been reviewed, the committee undertakes a refinement process: overlapping proposals are combined, redundant items are removed, and all items are categorized as either substantive changes or housekeeping items. The term “housekeeping” refers to technical corrections such as clause renumbering, clause reference updates, and typographical fixes.

Typically, it takes six to seven meetings for the Negotiation Committee to finalize which proposals will proceed to bargaining. At that point, the committee elects a Bargaining Team—a sub-committee tasked with negotiating on its behalf.

According to the AESES Constitution, the Negotiation Committee has the sole authority to negotiate the collective agreement with the employer. However, to manage time and workload effectively, the committee delegates this responsibility to the Bargaining Team. The collective agreement permits up to seven members of the Bargaining Team to bargain during regular working hours while continuing to receive their normal salary.

Once elected, the Bargaining Team receives the finalized list of proposals. These may be further refined for clarity and consistency, and formatted for presentation to the general membership.

Before bargaining begins, the Bargaining Team presents the proposals at a general meeting. Members have the opportunity to discuss, amend, add to, or delete proposals. The approved version becomes the basis for negotiations with the University.

This general meeting plays a crucial role in the bargaining process. A strong turnout sends a clear signal of unity and support, giving the Bargaining Team a more powerful mandate at the table. It also ensures the team’s direction is shaped by the priorities of the wider membership.

If you’re interested in making a difference and are able to commit the necessary time, we encourage you to get involved in this important process.

A nomination form for the Negotiation Committee is attached below. Following the election of the Negotiation Committee, the first meeting of the committee will be scheduled in early Fall 2025.

Each district may elect one member to the Negotiation Committee, except for districts 2, 5, and 30, which may elect two due to their size, and districts 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8, which may elect three. If you know someone in your district who would represent you well, please nominate them. Note: Nominees currently serving on the AESES Electoral & Districting Committee must resign from that role to stand for nomination. The nomination form must be signed by the nominee and two nominators. Refer to the district list to confirm your department’s district number.

View the AESES District List here.

Thank you for your interest. The deadline for receipt of nominations was Friday, July 11, 2025.

Please note that only signed members of AESES may nominate, be nominated, or vote.*

*Although dues are collected from support staff in AESES, they are only conferred full “membership rights” after they have signed a membership form (in accordance with Labour Law). Contact the AESES office or your Board Rep to see if you are a full member of the Association. Visit the membership page to learn more about membership and to download the form.

To help the Negotiation Committee arrive at a set of proposals which is reflective of the AESES membership, I would ask you to please send in your written comments, suggestions and/or your proposals for amending the collective agreement no later than July 25, 2025. All such material will be placed before the committee for discussion and possible inclusion in the set of formal proposals, which will be placed before the University.

• If you submit more than one proposal, please number them individually within your submission.
• Your proposal(s) are anonymous to your employer, as we do not share your name or direct proposal(s) with them.
• We only ask for your name and department to help us better understand your proposal(s), and this lets us follow up with you in case the committee requires clarification.

Please submit your proposal(s) using the online form below. Proposals can also be submitted by email, fax or mail. Please use this PDF document.

On behalf of the Negotiation Committee, I thank you for your valuable input.

Rob Parker
AESES President

Proposal Submission

Sorry, but the the deadline for submissions was July 25, 2025.