‘Wait and see’ prevalent as average length of contracts drops
Canada Labour Views (CLV) Reports has analyzed 71 wage settlements that occurred in Canada in April, May and June of 2009. Fifty-three are in the private sector. Seven of the agreements are from British Columbia, six are from Alberta, five from New Brunswick, two each from Quebec and Manitoba, one each from Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan, and six cover more than one province. Forty-one are from Ontario. They cover 118,800 employees. The average term of the agreements is 2.86 years. This average comprises six one-year agreements, two at less than two years, 12 two-year, one between two and three years, 34 three-year, three between three and four, nine four-year, one between four and five and three five-year. This average is significantly lower than recent quarters with a big jump in short agreements.
