Funding for COLA and salary increases for administrators in leadership roles has been confirmed for the 2024/25 school year. An overview of the labour settlement funding allocation methodology is also posted on the 2024/25 Estimated Operating Grants web page. Please contact the Funding and Allocation Unit at EDUC.FundingandAllocationUnit@gov.bc.ca if you have any questions.
Cost-of-Living Adjustment
On March 19, 2024, the Public Sector Employers’ Council Secretariat (PSEC-S) announced wage increase calculations and confirmed that unionized B.C. public sector employees with ratified collective agreements are receiving the maximum three percent increase. This calculation is based on the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) under the Shared Recovery Mandate, which is confirmed at one percent and then added to the guaranteed two percent increase under the collective agreements. In the K-12 sector, this applies to teachers, support staff and non-educator exempt positions.
Of the $60.8 million in COLA funding for public schools provided to the Ministry of Education and Child Care for the 2024/25 school year:
- $52.9 million has been allocated to the Operating Fund as a special grant by simulating the effect of flowing this funding through the operating grant rates
- $7.6 million has been allocated to the Classroom Enhancement Fund (CEF) based on an estimate of districts’ COLA costs for CEF staffing and overhead
- $0.4 million has been allocated to CommunityLINK
COLA funding allocated to the Operating Fund and CEF will be adjusted based on actual CEF costs submitted by districts in fall 2024. Any CEF portion not required to cover actuals will be put back into the Operating portion of the COLA funding in the 2024/25 recalculated operating grants announced in December 2024.
Salary Increases for Administrators in Leadership Roles
On March 22, 2024, PSEC-S confirmed that school districts will be provided with funding for 2024 salary increases for administrators in leadership roles (i.e., EN positions in EDAS – see page 2 of the Summary of 2024/25 Operating Grant Announcement). The total funding amount is calculated based on a three percent increase to salaries, as reported in the April 2022 Annual Compensation Forecast (2021 Compensation Base Survey data projected to April 2022).
The $15.9 million funding envelope has been allocated to districts as a special grant by simulating the effect of flowing this funding through the operating grant rates.
Funding provided is separate from the approval for providing salary increases to specific exempt staff, which must be approved by the BC Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA).
District allocations for COLA and exempt (EN) salary increases and revised CommunityLINK funding amounts are in the Summary of Grants to Date, 2024/25, posted on the 2024/25 Estimated Operating Grants web page.