The union representing roughly 500 employees at General Dynamics Land Systems Canada in London, Ont. has ratified a new three-year contract that includes pension and benefits gains.
The agreement provides increased employer contributions to the defined benefit pension plan, including an additional $1 for production employees and an additional $1.20 for skilled trades workers in years one and three of the contract respectively. Defined contribution pension plan members will receive a contribution of $1,750 to their group registered retirement savings plan in years one and three.
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The agreement also reduces new hire eligibility for health and dental coverage to the first day of the fourth month following the date of hire and the safety shoe allowance will increase by $25 to a maximum of $275 per worker per year. It also includes $500 for custom orthotics with the elimination of the employer’s preferred service provider purchasing requirement and an enhancement to eligibility for dependent tuition from calendar to academic year with an annual maximum of $1,500 per child.
Workers will also receive increases in eye exam coverage (from $85 to $120 every 24 months), mental-health coverage from ($700 to $1,000 per calendar year) and dental coverage (from $3,000 to $3,200, excluding orthodontics). They’ll also receive an additional paid holiday on Friday Jan. 2, 2026.
Employees will receive a $1,000 ratification bonus and an immediate wage increase of three per cent, a 2.75 per cent lump-sum payment the following year and an additional three per cent wage increase in the final year of the agreement. The agreement also reduces the current wage grid by one year and will also provide members with three additional special payments of $1,200 in July of each year of the agreement.
The cost-of-living allowance float of $4.20 has also been rolled into the full wage rate for all job classifications for hours worked on or after March 17, 2025. The COLA float will then reset to $0.05 and continue with its existing growth formula.
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