Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

source: Vancouver Sun, June 13 2008

Travellers going through customs at Vancouver International Airport today have faced waits of up to two hours because customs officials are deliberately slowing down lines to highlight a contract dispute, a union president said.

“The officers did tell me today that they’re working to the full extent of their work description,” said Sue Neumann, customs excise union president responsible for Vancouver’s airport, sea ports and cruise ships. “This is obviously a reaction, this is not normal.”

The union is currently in a contract dispute with the Canada Border Services Agency, but is not in a legal strike position.

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Actions are taking place all across the province…

In Downtown Vancouver, meet in front of Canada Place for music, speakers and food from 12 noon - 1PM. Look for the PSAC banners! Show your support for Public Services and your Bargaining Teams! Wear your “I Support My Bargaining Team” tattoo or sticker and enjoy a free hot dog!

In Metro Vancouver members are going to a Bargaining, BBQ and Baseball event at Nat Bailey Stadium. They’ll hear about negotiations, share a meal, and enjoy a Vancouver Canadians game afterwards!

The South Kootenays is encouraging members to dress in ratty clothes to demonstrate how poorly they are paid.

In the Service Canada site in Prince George members will be in beach wear with “We deserve better” buttons and balloons and “I Support my bargaining team” tattoos and stickers at its National Public Service Week breakfast.

Fraser Valley is distributing peanuts, symbolizing what they think of the employer’s pay offer and giving out bargaining information to the members.

There will be a Union Pizza Day lunch at both Service Canada Sites in Kamloops and Salmon Arm. In Kamloops they are asking members to wear green that day (Show us some green) and will have green balloons with I Support my Bargaining Team stickers.

If there are no events near you initiate your own!

There are plenty of things you can do to show your support! Download our “Things to Do” flyer (.pdf)

Send a message to your MP! Sign a Think Public postcard and make sure your MP gets the message!

An esssential step on the path to reconciliation.

Published in today’s Vancouver Sun newspaper:

British Columbians join with aboriginal people in recognizing the importance of the apology yesterday for the horrific abuses in residential schools.
And we pledge to do our part to move forward from apology to action - to go forward with aboriginal people on the path to reconciliation, self-determination, dignity and justice that has so long been denied.

A message from BC’s unions - and our members province-wide.
BC Federation of Labour - BC Government and Service Employees’ Union - BC Teachers’ Federation - Canadian Auto Workers - Canadian Labour Congress - Canadian Office & Professional Employees Union 378 - Canadian Union of Public Employees BC - Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada, Western Region - Health Sciences Association - Hospital Employees’ Union - International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers - International Longshore and Warehouse Union - International Operating Engineers - Public Service Alliance of Canada, BC Region - United Steelworkers, District 3.

Saturday, June 14 @ 2 pm - starts outside Downtown Eastside Women Centre, 302 Columbia- corner Cordova, just west of Main.
 
Join women in the Downtown Eastside Women Centre Power of Women Group in the 2nd Annual March for Women’s Housing and March Against Poverty!
 
We are marching for:
 - Social Housing, Childcare, and Healthcare for all!
 - No more Evictions and No more Condos in the DTES!
 - People Before Olympic Profits!  No Olympics on Stolen Land!
 - Stop Criminalizing the Poor and Scrap Civil City!
 - End Global Hunger and Poverty!
 
The Power of Women Group is a group at the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre and we do education on social issues. We are a group of women from all walks of life who are either on social assistance, working poor, or homeless; but we are all living in extreme poverty. Many of us are single mothers or have had our children apprehended due to poverty; most of us have chronic physical or mental health issues for example HIV and Hepatitis C; many have drug or alcohol addictions; and a majority have experienced and survived sexual violence and mental, physical, spriritual, and emotional abuse. For indigenous women, we are affected by a legacy of the effects of residential schools and a history of colonization and racism.

For more information contact project@dewc.ca or call 604-681-8480 x 234

At their meeting earlier this week, the PSAC National Board of Directors adopted a resolution brought forward by REVP Kay Sinclair, which commits the PSAC to lobbying the federal government to accept the counsel of enlightened medical and law enforcement professionals and support the work of Insite. Similar resolutions have been adopted by the BC Federation of Labour and the Canadian Labour Congress.

• Read the text of the resolution.

Insite, located in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, commenced operation in 2003 and is North America’s only safe injection site for IV drug users. Dedicated to the principle of harm reduction, the goal of Insite is to prevent overdoses and the spread of blood-borne diseases and to provide a point of access to health and detoxification services for drug users.

• Read more about Insite here.

In the face of the federal government’s apparent intent to let Insite’s license to operate expire, the British Columbia Supreme Court extended the facility’s license for one year and directed the government to redraft its drug laws in order to accommodate Insite’s operations. The Harper government has announced that it will appeal the judgment.

The complete list of PSAC/UPCE demands for the current negotiations is now available at the national website (pdf).

posted on behalf of Paul Jones, GLBT Coordinator on the BC Regional Council

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I am writing to you today to introduce myself as the newly elected LGBT Regional Coordinator for the BC Regional Council of the PSAC. I am a member of my local executive, UNDE 21010 and a member of two employment equity groups, LGBT and PWD. I am truly honoured that I will be representing you over the next 3 years. I am excited and committed to furthering our issues, promoting equality in both our union and in the public and providing a strong voice for you at the Council.

There are a number of initiatives that I believe are worth your participation. For example: “Multi-Union Pride” (August 3, 2008) in Vancouver - Multi-Union Pride is constructing a float and all Mainland members are encouraged to assist in any way they may be able. The Victoria Pride Day parade and festival (July 6, 2008) - I will be looking at a walking contingent and information table at the festival with the hopes of broadening community awareness surrounding the good work we do in our communities and abroad and the support we give our LGBT members throughout Canada. We do have a minimal budget to work with regarding these initiatives but we can also utilize some of these funds to affiliate with local organizations on the mainland, inland and on the island to participate in community events.

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Collective bargaining with the BC Corps of Commissionaires resumed May 29 and 30, 2008. Some of the issues discussed include:

• Management Rights
• Union Recognition
• Bargaining Unit Work
• Job Security
• Union Representatives
• Use of Client Facilities
• Employee Orientation
• Union Dues and Membership
• Information
• Discrimination
• Harassment
• Leave With or Without Pay for Union Business
• Seniority
• Grievance and Arbitration Procedure
• Technological Change

Although some progress was made during those two (2) days of negotiations, no articles were signed off. These negotiations, for a first collective agreement, include two (2) bargaining units: approximately 40 Commissionaires performing work on behalf of the Canadian Border Services Agency at Library Square and the Vancouver International Airport and 8 Commissionaires performing work on behalf of Fisheries and Oceans Canada at the Seal Cove Coast Guard Base in Prince Rupert.

Information sessions with the membership are planned to be held shortly. The next meeting with the employer is scheduled for June 17 and 18, 2008.

Treasury Board has recently attempted to shift the blame onto the PSAC for cancelling what were only tentative bargaining dates in June. If anyone’s responsible for bargaining not taking place in June, it’s Treasury Board.

• Send an email to your MP: let them know Public Services make a difference!

PSAC has already been at the bargaining table for a year. What we’ve heard most from Treasury Board is NO, NO and more NO.

• NO to the elimination of regional pay zones
• NO to pay adjustments to bring our members’ salaries in line with the private and public sectors
• NO to important demands such as job security for CBSA members affected by the arming initiative.

At the same time, it has taken a year for Treasury Board to put any pressure on departments to submit their proposals for essential services. Treasury Board knows very well that Essential Services Agreements must be signed before members can take legal strike action. The longer they drag this process out, the more they think it will weaken the union’s ability to negotiate fair settlements for our members.

Don’t be fooled by pious words from Treasury Board about how they’re committed to the bargaining process and to a settlement.

• During the last year, Treasury Board could have treated our demands seriously at the table. All they’ve done so far is withdraw most of their demands for take-aways. It has taken us a year to get back to square one.
• Treasury Board could have put a serious wage offer on the table, dealing with all our pay problems, not just 1.5% and 1.2%.
• Treasury Board could have proposed a shorter agreement instead of trying to lock our members into a four-year agreement.

It’s time to show Treasury Board who’s really to blame for the fact that we’re fast approaching the one-year anniversary date of our members being without a new agreement.

June 19 is your opportunity to join with your co-workers to tell the employer that you deserve to be treated with respect. Stay tuned to the website for actions planned near you, or sign up for the TB regional bargaining update email list.

Our bargaining team members aren’t the only people who were angered by Treasury Board’s wage offer of 1.5% and 1.2%.

As your National President, I’m disgusted that the employer would show so little respect for the work that our members perform every day for Canadians across the country, in all walks of life.

Our members provide quality public services. All we expect is a fair increase that protects our purchasing power and provides fair compensation.

It’s not that the government couldn’t do better. The Treasury Board offer is a far cry from the settlement our Union negotiated just last fall with the Canada Revenue Agency.

Not only do our Treasury Board members have to put up with a dinosaur of a classification system that doesn’t recognize the work they do, and outdated notions like regional rates of pay, they’re now being offered increases that don’t even match the increases in the cost of living.

Your bargaining team members and your elected officers are speaking out against the government’s wage offer. But we need you to speak out too.

We’re coming up to the one-year anniversary of the expiry date of most of our agreements with Treasury Board.

One year later and we still don’t have a new collective agreement – just a miserable wage offer.

I urge all of you to participate in activities being planned for June 19. Look for information from your Local/Branch and from the PSAC regional office in your area.

We need to send a loud and strong message to this government that we expect and demand better. You’re worth it!

In solidarity, John Gordon, National President

Attention to all members of the DD, EG, GT, PI, PY and TI pay groups.

Your Bargaining Team encourages PSAC members to register for the automatic email update on the PSAC National Website and for regional bargaining updates at psacbc.com

Your TC Bargaining Team was in from May 26th to 28th, marking the one-year anniversary of our first meetings with the employer and this round of Collective “Barguing” (Bargaining/Arguing).

To date, still the employer has not agreed to a single substantive change in the collective agreement. Further, unlike the PA Table where the Employer withdrew all of their clawbacks, the clawbacks still remain at the TC Table.

We presented further arguments on:

• Article 34.09 Travelling Status Leave – the Employer said NO and that there was no flexibility to change;
• Article 43 Maternity Related Reassignment – the Employer does not see a problem at the TC Table;
• Article 54 Education Leave – the Employer does not believe that any requests have been unreasonably withheld;
• Article 65 Pay Administration (Acting Pay 65.09) – the Employer said “Employees at TC cannot substantially perform the duties in only one day”;
• New Article for No Contracting Out – the Employer said NO because they need the flexibility;
• Sessional Leave for members in the Translation Bureau – these employees were recently reclassified to the TC Table so we want to sign an MOU (Memorandum Of Understanding), as soon as possible, to ensure these members continue to receive this benefit but the Employer has refused to sign. Even though these members have previously negotiated for this benefit, the employer insists that we sacrifice something in order to get this back;
• Appendix D – MOU for Search and Rescue (SAR) Controllers – the Employer will research;
• New GT Enforcement Allowance – the Employer will research.

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Bargaining Workplace Fairness

Our PSAC/UPCE National Bargaining Team met with Canada Post in Ottawa to exchange bargaining proposals on June 4th. We presented a series of specific, detailed proposals based on the input we received from members across the country.

We have, among other proposals, suggested ways in which bargaining unit work can be better protected, (no contracting out), signalled to the employer that there is no tolerance for personal harassment or abuse of authority and have again reminded the Corporation that our members have the fundamental right to work in a harassment free environment.

We have also tabled proposals that will simplify and improve the grievance process, tackle subjective and unfair staffing practices and will improve the working conditions of part-time workers and Contact Centre workers.

The team was generally very disappointed with the Corporation’s approach to our first day of bargaining. It appears that through “corporate speak” the Corporation will be targeting our hard won Vacation Leave entitlements, Health Care Benefits, Staffing and Pay.

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Joint JLP Workshops Being Offered by the PSAC and the Pacific Federal Council in Vancouver, Surrey and Abbotsford.

The PSAC and the Pacific Federal Council are working together to offer Joint Learning Program (JLP) workshops during National Public Service Week in the Vancouver and Fraser Valley areas.

We are offering the 1-day respecting Differences/Anti-Discrimination workshop in Vancouver, Surrey, and Abbotsford.

The dates and locations for the workshops are:

• Vancouver: June 17th, Vancouver YWCA, 733 Beatty Street
• Surrey: June 17th, Surrey Days Inn, 9850 King George Hwy
• Abbotsford: June 18th, Best Western, 32110 Marshall Road

This exciting and interactive workshop examines what is meant by diversity and why gaining an understanding of issues of diversity and equity is both an individual and organizational necessity. There will be an exploration on how unconscious biases or assumptions impair our ability to work with others and limit our lives. By using various exercises and case studies, participants will practice skills to deal with the challenges of facing diversity in a reflective, responsible, and proactive manner.

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Your PA negotiating team was the first of the union’s team to be presented with Treasury Board’s monetary offer. It consisted of a woefully inadequate economic increase and nothing else.

Treasury Board had the nerve to propose 1.5% for 2007, 1.5% for 2008, 1.2% for 2009 and 1.2% for 2010 in a four-year agreement.

• No adjustments to bring us in line with Canada Revenue Agency workers.
• No other market adjustments.
• No changes in increments.
• Allowances – they’ll get back to us.
• Nothing but a proposal for an economic increase that’s an insult.

Your team was outraged.

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The SV Team was once again back at the table for a session with the employer from May 20 to 22, 2008.

We provided language around unresolved Ship’s Crews demands to the employer , and they provided us a copy of their outstanding proposals.

Apprenticeship language, which was signed off at our session in February but still required the pay grid to be completed, is now finalized and signed off.

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