On September 9, 2025, AUPE Vice President, Curtis Jackson, characterized the Town's latest offer as "misleading", and questioned the accuracy of employees, under this offer, receiving an average 17% increase to base wages over 4 years. As a result, during its September 15, 2025, Regular Council Meeting, Coaldale Town Council passed the following motion, directing Town staff to engage an independent third-party auditor to review both the Town's final offer (Comprehensive Offer #3) and AUPE's most recent counterproposal:
THAT Council directs Administration to engage an independent third-party, auditor, to review both the Town’s most recent offer to AUPE and AUPE’s most recent counterproposal and prepare a report calculating the true percentage increase associated with each position. FURTHERMORE, the third-party report will be provided publicly so that residents, Council, and employees have a clear and independent assessment of the numbers. Councillors Abrey, Beekman and Mayor Van Rijn will choose the auditor. FURTHER, THAT a Special Council Meeting be scheduled for September 22, 2025, where the auditor, pending availability, will report back to Council on the respective percentages.
As per the above motion, on September 22, 2025, the auditor (MNP LLP) reported back to Council on the respective percentages during a Special Council Meeting, finding that the Town's offer of an average 17% increase to base wages over 4 years was actually conservative. In reality, Comprehensive Offer #3 proposed an average 18.65% over 4 years (due to the effect of compounding). Meanwhile, AUPE's most recent counterproposal calls for an average 25.97% increase to base wages over 4 years.
To read the full independent third-party report, please click on the button below.