Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

Your PSAC negotiating teams have come to the bargaining table to address serious issues. The PA unit has been discussing changes to the grievance procedure and language training. Hours of work and overtime,apprenticeship and child care for shift workers have been topics at the SV unit table, as well as the establishment of a Ships’ Crews sub-committee to address this group’s specific issues. The TC team has been focusing on the many allowances that affect this unit and finalizing documentation required for their pay study.

Job security in the context of the Canada Border Service Agency’s arming of Border Service Officers is a critical issue at the FB table and is also the subject of a PSAC unfair labour practice complaint with the Public Service Labour Relations Board (PSLRB). The EB unit has been presenting their position on expanding the application of the no discrimination clause and on the issues of education and career development leaves.

However, in spite of the best efforts by your union, negotiations are being delayed.

What’s holding us back?

A common complaint about negotiations with Treasury Board is that they take so long. In order to try to speed up negotiations this time, PSAC filed notice to bargain at the earliest possible date for all our Treasury Board bargaining units – four months before each agreement expired.

Bargaining demands were exchanged electronically and negotiations began in May. More negotiation sessions were held in June and early October and additional meetings are scheduled starting October 30 and continuing into November. However, scheduled dates for bargaining in early December for all our TB units have been postponed.

One of the reasons for the delay is that two compensation studies being conducted by the PSLRB the union hoped would be completed by December are taking longer than expected. One study is examining employees performing enforcement work; another is for members of the TC unit. Our teams need the results of the studies because they are critical to the negotiation of economic increases.

Employer tricks no treat

So far many departments have not met their legal obligations to provide even the most basic information that is required to complete the essential services agreements (ESAs). These agreements, which are replacing the previous designations, identify essential tasks that must continue in the event of a strike between the parties. As a result of all the departmental foot dragging, the PSAC has filed complaints with the Public Service Labour Relations Board in order to force the departments to provide the necessary information. At the same time, we’re continuing to work with the departments to obtain the information we need