Queer Yukon Society signs first-ever collective agreement

Queer Yukon Society signed its first-ever collective agreement February 14, implementing protections for all employees, excluding the executive director. 

"This is an agreement for queer people, by queer people," said Lisa Vollans-Leduc, vice president of the Yukon Employees Union.

The deal was three years in the making. It includes terms such as sick leave for gender affirming care, Indigenous-led alternate dispute resolution and the ability for staff to engage in social justice movements. It is in effect until December 31, 2025 and is back-dated to July 15, 2022, meaning that some benefits will be afforded to staff retroactively. 

Vollans-Leduc hopes this agreement will set a precedent for other employers at a time when anti-LGBTQ2S+ hate is on the rise. 

"It's important as a stage-setter for agreements across the country," Vollans-Leduc said. "Queer rights are human rights, worker rights are human rights. And Queer Yukon Society has this amazing agreement, but there are queer people who are working throughout the territory for many employers."

The agreement comes after a tumultuous period for Queer Yukon. It was initially rejected by the board in September. Then in October, the society's public programming was paused after staff expressed concerns about their safety. A month later, four board members resigned in response to calls for their removal. 

Now the society has a new executive director and a new board. Austria Lopez, Queer Yukon's Community Engagement Coordinator in Watson Lake, says the agreement has full support from the new board.

"We have a lot of benefits and you can feel the support from the board, they want to implement it, they want to follow it," Lopez said. 

The society's programming has yet to fully resume, but Lopez says the board is finalizing policies to ensure staff feel safe when programming resumes. She says that the collective agreement will help staff improve the services they provide.

"When you feel support from your people, you are better at work, and before we didn't feel this. We didn't feel secure showing up to work, " Lopez said. "Now we have a structure, now we [know] exactly what kind of positions we need for Queer Yukon. It's the guidelines for how to run the organization."

Lopez says finalizing the agreement was a win for staff during a difficult time. 

"We're having a very hard moment, because our community is being attacked…and right now is the perfect moment to have a voice, to feel that we have protection, not just from the union, but that we have protection from our own community."