Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

The PSAC bargaining team for the EB Group met with the Employer from November 6 to 9, 2007

The Employer did not respond favourably to our proposals to improve bereavement leave. We are asking for leave of five working days when there is a death in the immediate family, and we are trying to improve the discretionary leave for bereavement-related travel to five days from three. We are also proposing to increase bereavement leave provisions dealing with extended family members and to add co-workers and close friends to the list.

Moreover, we are seeking to have the Employer recognize the special leave requirements for those who have traditional bereavement responsibilities in aboriginal communities.

We are disappointed to report that the Employer also turned down our proposal to include gender identity and expression, as well as political activity, in the list of prohibited grounds of discrimination, despite a passionate presentation in which we invited Treasury Board to join us in making a powerful statement opposing discrimination of all kinds in the workplace. This demand as well as our bereavement leave proposals remain on the table.

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Your bargaining team had a lot of face-to-face discussions with the employer during the bargaining session on the week of October 29. These discussions have laid the groundwork for future talks at the bargaining table.

We have achieved resolution on rest period language and commenced discussions on the scope and structure of various allowances and began discussions on new allowances.

We continued discussions on other items, including:

• Childcare fund
• Maternity reassignment
• Early retirement for members in emergency and enforcement
• Harassment
• Apprenticeship
• Injury on Duty Leave
• Overtime language for FRs (Firefighters)
• Shift and Weekend Premiums

The bargaining session that had been scheduled for December has been postponed. To date many departments have not met their legal obligations to provide the most basic information pertaining to Essential Services Agreements (formerly known as designations). This has resulted in your Union filing complaints with the Public Service Labour Relations Board (PSLRB), in order to force Departments to provide the necessary information, as we continue to seek the information from the Departments. The postponement is also due to delays with compensation studies.

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.

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To: All TB Local/Branch Presidents - BC Mainland, TB-RVPs/NVPs, Area Councils - BC Mainland
From: Monica Urrutia, Treasury Board Regional Strike Coordinator – BC Mainland

Re: Treasury Board Mobilization Update

This letter is going out to all TB Local/Branch Presidents on the BC Mainland. A similar letter has already been sent to locals on the Island.

I am writing to inform you that the Treasury Board Regional Strike Coordinating Committee has met on two separate occasions. The meetings took place in September and October to discuss this round of Treasury Board negotiations and to start organizing the area coordinators.

One of our main goals is enhanced communication. We aim to ensure that we have the most up-to-date contact information for all worksites in BC including contact information for your Local/Branch executive.

• Sign up for Treasury Board bargaining updates via email here.

Dave Jackson is the TB-Regional Strike Coordinator for the Island. Monica Urrutia is the TB-Regional Strike Coordinator for the BC Mainland.

• Contact your Area/Hub Strike Coordinator here.

The Vancouver Island has been divided into 7 HUBS and the BC Mainland has been divided into 13 areas, for ease of coordinating our communication networks in the event that this round of bargaining results in job action.

• Downtown Vancouver – Hub 1 (Downtown Vancouver, worksites north of Georgia St.) – Area Coordinator: Alistair Crawford (UCTE)
• Downtown Vancouver – Hub 2 (Downtown Vancouver, worksites south of Georgia St.) – Area Coordinator: Velna Clarke (NAT)
• Metro Vancouver (worksites in the city of Vancouver, except Downtown) – Area Coordinator: Robert Strang (CEIU)
• Richmond (Worksites in Richmond) – Area Coordinator: Alexander Bishop (CEUDA)
• Waterfront (Grain Inspectors, worksites in North & West Vancouver and northwards) – Area Coordinator: Teri Friday (AGR)
• East Metro (Worksites in Burnaby, New West, Coquitlam, etc.) – Area Coordinator: Andy Yung (NAT)
• Surrey/Delta/Langley (Worksites in Surrey, Delta, Langley etc.) – Area Coordinator: Donna Cowan (UVAE)
• Fraser Valley (Worksites in Abbotsford, Mission, Chilliwack, etc.) – Area Coordinator: Jayne Johns (CEIU)
• Kamloops (Worksites in Kamloops, Lillooet, Osoyoos, 100 Mile etc.) – Area Coordinator: Dave Leicester (CEIU)
• Okanagan (Worksites in Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton, Oliver etc.) – Area Coordinator: Randy Ihme (CEUDA)
• South Kootenays (Worksites in Nelson, Cranbrook, Trail, Revelstoke etc.) – Area Coordinator: Sheila Pearce (CEIU)
• North West (Worksites in Prince Rupert, Queen Charlottes, Kitimat, Terrace etc.) – Area Coordinator: Be Gomes (USGE)
• North East (Worksites in Prince George, Quesnel, Wms Lake, Ft St John, etc.) – Area Coordinator: Diane Beaulieu (CEIU)
• Island Hub 1 (Downtown Victoria including up to Huron Street) – Area Coordinator: Virginia Vaillancourt (UVAE).
• Island Hub 2 (Downtown Victoria from Fort Street to Pandora) – Area Coordinator: Mandi Schubert (CEIU).
• Island Hub 3 (CFB Esquimalt/Colwood and Rocky Point) – Area Coordinator: Mark Miller (UNDE).
• Island Hub 4 (Graving Dock including the Veteran’s Cemetary) – Area Coordinator: Tim Isherwood (GSU).
• Island Hub 5 (Metro Victoria including William Head) – Area Coordinator: Nick Humphreys (UEW).
• Island Hub 6 (Nanaimo-Qualicum-Tofino-Duncan) – Area Coordinators: Patricia Lamont (CEIU) & Christine Walker (CEIU).
• Island Hub 7 (Campbell River-Courtenay/Comox and North) – Area Coordinators: Nicole Gibson (USGE) & Tom Hopkins (UEW).

Area Coordinators will be contacting you for work site contacts within your Locals/Branches that fall within their areas. We will also be planning bargaining information sessions and may have a member/negotiator at as many of the information sessions as they become available.

If you require any further information or clarification, please contact the Vancouver RO at 604-430-5361/toll free 1-800-663-1655 or the Victoria RO at 250 953 1050 / toll free 1-866-953-1050.

We look forward to working with you.

Your negotiating team met with the Employer from October 9 to 12. The PSAC’s proposal regarding the No Discrimination clause, an issue for which the EB group is the lead table, was the subject of long and serious discussions. The PSAC wants to ensure that the non-discrimination clause includes gender identity and political activity. Your team explained its position to the Employer and answered questions.The Education Leave Without Pay and the Career Development Leave were also the subjects of intense discussions. We asked several questions to the Employer regarding the selection and information process and the budget allocation for these leaves. Our goal is to ensure fairness and consistency in the application of this article in the different departments.

We also discussed the Employer’s proposal regarding the Appendix G - MOU with respect to continuous learning and Appendix L - MOU concerning Whistleblowing.

The EB group will meet again from November 6 to 9.

Your TC bargaining team was in Ottawa from October 9th to the 12th and met with Treasury Board several times.

The union team spent time discussing some operational group specific issues. The team focused their efforts in finalizing some 9 different allowances being proposed.

We signed off on some minor articles and presentations were given Treasury Board on hours of work.

Your team finalized the documents required for the TC Table Pay Study. The study will compare our wages to those of other people doing similar work in both the private and public sectors. This will be used in our negotiations on wages.

Our next meetings are scheduled for November 2nd to the 9th.

Bargaining proposal calls for protections for all Union members at CBSA through arming implementation

Our FB Bargaining Team met with Treasury Board/CBSA for four days the week of October 9 in an effort to bring us closer to a new collective agreement. At the outset, our team expressed disappointment and frustration over CBSA’s communications to Union members over the summer regarding the Arming Initiative, including management’s Intranet postings and direct discussions with our members. We reminded the Employer that these actions on the part of CBSA represent both a violation of labour law and a barrier to constructive negotiations. In response to CBSA’s position, our team tabled a bargaining demand calling for full job security for every member of our union at CBSA. Treasury Board/CBSA refused to make any job security commitments at the bargaining table. We are holding to our demand.

CBSA is being reckless and irresponsible in threatening potential job loss over the implementation of the Arming Initiative. Our hope is that the Employer will do the right thing, return to the bargaining table next month and work with our team to ensure that all PSAC members at CBSA are guaranteed full job security under our new contract as firearms are introduced.

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Postponement of our December Treasury Board bargaining sessions has become necessary, due to delays with the Essential Service Agreements (ESAs) and the compensation studies.

Essential Service Agreements

To date, many Departments have not met their legal obligations to provide the most basic information in regards to essential services agreements. This has resulted in PSAC filing complaints with the Public Service Labour Relations Board (PSLRB), in order to force Departments to provide the necessary information to conclude the ESAs. While we are pushing the PSLRB to act on our complaints, we are also continuing to seek the information from the Departments.

Previously known as designations, these agreements identify essential tasks that must continue in the event of a strike between the parties. The completion of ESAs is an integral part of the negotiations process; this employer inaction is therefore causing delays in bargaining.

Compensation Studies

At the request of PSAC and Treasury Board, the PSLRB is conducting two compensation studies; one examining Treasury Board employees performing enforcement work, and another for members of the Technical Services (TC) bargaining unit. These compensation studies were expected to be completed by December 2007. Unfortunately, due to a number of circumstances, both compensation studies will be delayed into the new year. Your bargaining teams need to have access to the studies’ outcomes in order to proceed at the bargaining table. The results of the studies are critical to the negotiation of economic increases.

We expect most, if not all tables to complete work on demands that can be negotiated without the completion of the pay studies during the October/November bargaining sessions. Given this, we have postponed the December 2007 negotiations sessions. During December, negotiating team members will be engaged in mobilization activities in the field. We encourage members to participate in these activities, and remain involved in the negotiation of their next collective agreement.

After the summer break, the members of the PSAC Program and Administrative Services (PA) negotiating team returned ready and eager to get down to bargaining with Treasury Board. We are united in our goal of achieving the best possible agreement for our members.

The two parties met every day from October 2 to 5. During that time, the union made presentations to the employer on the following issues:

• changes to the grievance procedure,
• union leave, and
• the Joint Learning Program.

The union also tabled a proposed Memorandum of Understanding on the issue of language training.

During the week, the two teams spent time negotiating several non-monetary operational demands and while progress at the table is slow, it has been steady.

Your PA team is looking forward to being back at the bargaining table on October 30. Negotiations are scheduled to continue up to and including November 2.

Our proposal: a fair, objective standard for assigning shift work

During the lead-up to bargaining, members across the country raised concerns about the lack of clear, objective standards with respect to how employees are assigned work hours. In some parts of the country, who works when is mutually agreed upon. In other cases, management assigns the shifts.

To deal with the issue our team has brought a bargaining demand to the table that proposes a clear, transparent and fair standard for the allocation of shifts. While VSSA’s and the hours for shifts would remain the same as under our current contract, under our proposal individuals would bid on the shift or line they wish to work for all shift-based work schedules at CBSA. The shift or line would be assigned by seniority, rather than management making the decision unilaterally.

Recent problems at Pearson and P.E. Trudeau airports in Toronto and Montreal have only served to reinforce the fact that we need a fair system around the allocation of shifts. Seniority is recognized in worksites around the world as the only way to ensure fairness and objectivity. Our years of service with our employer should be respected.

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All of the PSAC negotiating teams for our Treasury Board units met with the employer in bargaining sessions in May and June. During those sessions, the five teams tabled our bargaining demands reflecting the improvements we are trying to achieve. However, Treasury Board also has come to the bargaining table with their demands, many of which require an immense amount of interpretation.

For instance, the Employer wishes to discuss a new approach to pay. Since our initial discussions at the bargaining table focus on non-monetary demands, it will be some time down the road before the employer’s position on any monetary issue is known.

Treasury Board wants:

• the elimination of additional sick leave for shift workers,
• the elimination of the right to have a complete and current job description,
• the elimination of vacation advance payments

The employer is also asking for:

• a reduction in the amount of vacation leave members can carry over,
• a reduction in the amount of overtime part time workers can claim,
• reductions to call back and reporting pay entitlements,
• a reduction in the number of situations where double time for overtime work would apply,
• a reduction in the notice period for changes to shift schedule from 7 days to 48 hours.

The employer also wants to increase and/or adjust core working hours for some groups and have indicated they intend to table demands on severance pay and Work Force Adjustment.

Although some Employer demands are unclear at this point, many are perfectly clear. Your bargaining teams are committed to saying NO to any demand calling for a roll-back in current terms and conditions of employment.

The negotiating teams are back at the bargaining table in October. Check back for regular bargaining updates.

The negotiating teams for all five PSAC Treasury Board bargaining units were in negotiations this month. In addition to bargaining, the teams held a joint meeting on June 9 to share information. Here’s what happened at each bargaining table.

Our Program and Administrative Services (PA) negotiating team met with Treasury Board from June 5th to 7th/8th. They made a presentation to the employer on language training and will be tabling language on this issue during the next set of meetings. A number of articles currently in the collective agreement were signed off as renewed. These were articles for which neither side had any demands. Every member of the team had the opportunity to speak to one or more of our demands at the table and to engage with the employer on issues specific to this bargaining unit.

Our Operational Services (SV) team also met with Treasury Board on June 5th to 7th. The Union responded to and asked a number of questions of clarification on several items, and the parties traded preliminary thoughts on outstanding classification and apprenticeship issues. The parties also signed off on 19 renewable articles on which no demands had been made by either side, and which are not impacted by any new proposals, and a handful of editorial changes required as a result of the Public Service Modernization Act (PSMA).

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The PSAC negotiating teams for all five Treasury Board bargaining units were in Ottawa during the week of May 14 for their first face-to-face meetings with the employer teams. The purpose of these meetings was to formally introduce the members of both teams and review the demands exchanged electronically last month. The chief negotiator for each team read through the demands and entertained preliminary questions to clarify the intent of each demand.

During the week, all five PSAC teams took time to meet and exchange information and share their perspectives on the initial negotiating sessions.

On May 14, members of the teams joined in a demonstration in support of the elimination of regional rates of pay. They joined thousands of other members who participated in similar activities across the country.

• More about the No Zones campaign.

The Technical Services unit negotiating team greatly appreciated the support of the Transportation Safety Board members of PSAC’s Union of Canadian Transportation Employees component who sent them a balloon-o-gram that really lifted their spirits. Thank you!

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A key issue: eliminating regional rates of pay

OTTAWA – Bargaining for over 100,000 federal public sector workers is beginning as the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) meets today in Ottawa with the federal government.

According to PSAC National President John Gordon, delegates to the PSAC convention in 2006 adopted a comprehensive policy to defend quality public services. “The union has tabled a number of bargaining demands that are designed to maintain and enhance federal public services in response to a Conservative government whose ideology is one of smaller government and by extension, fewer and less effective services for Canadians.”

PSAC started getting ready for this round of negotiations in the summer of 2006 when it sent out its input call to union Locals and Branches for bargaining proposals. Members participated in two regional bargaining conferences and a national bargaining conference where delegates finalized bargaining demands and chose the members of the negotiating teams.

“The union served notice to bargain at the earliest possible date before the expiry date of each of the five agreements,” says Gordon. “The parties exchanged demands on April 27 and for the first time we’re starting negotiations before any of these agreements expire. We’re ready and eager to negotiate.”

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Treasury Board units have exchanged bargaining demands with the employer. You can download the demands at the national website.

The first meetings with the employer will take place next week!

May 14 and 15 for the PA and SV units and on May 17 and 18 for the TC, EB and FB units. At these meetings, the union and employer negotiating teams will review and explain demands and answer any questions about them. Negotiations will start in earnest at the next set of meetings. The PA and SV teams will meet with the employer from June 5 to 8, the TC, EB and FB teams from June 12-15.

Connect with team members…

The following is a list of member negotiators from the different bargaining units who are from B.C., feel free to connect with them regarding your thoughts on the demands and to express your support for their efforts on your behalf!

• FB - Lawji, Karim - klawji@shaw.ca
• FB - McGillivray, Carolyn - cmcg@telus.net
• PA - Adam, Megan - pa.bargaining@psacbc.com
• PA (1st Alternate) - Vaillancourt, Virginia - uvaevictoria@shaw.ca
• SV - Dureen, Melvin - mdureen@uniserve.com
• SV - Sanderson, Randy - sandersonr@telus.net
• TC - McKenzie, Darrell-Lee - starshine@telus.net
• TC - Robinson, Phil - nosnibor_york@yahoo.ca
• EB - no member negotiators in B.C. Please contact urrutim@psac.com for more information.

In Solidarity, Monica Urrutia, TB - Regional Strike Coordinator (BC Mainland)

This round of Treasury Board bargaining began in the summer of 2006, with a call to Local/Branch members for bargaining input. A comprehensive Program of Demands package was sent to all Local/Branch Executives. The bargaining input you forwarded to your Component was reviewed by bargaining unit. That input was reduced to wage demands and 30 non-wage proposals and sent to the union’s national bargaining conference held in February. At this conference, members elected negotiating team members and debated and decided upon the bargaining proposals that would be presented to the employer.

The demands for each of the Treasury Board bargaining units are a result of broad-based input and debate by members of these bargaining units and we thank you for your participation in the process.

Download the demands at the national website.

PSAC Bargaining Units with Treasury Board (PA, SV, TC, EB, FB) - It’s time to begin bargaining!

PSAC has already started to put the Treasury Board on notice that we’re getting ready to bargain. The union had committed that, in this round of bargaining, notice to bargain would be served at the earliest possible legal date – four months before the expiry dates of each of the agreements – and that bargaining would begin before these agreements expire.

Notice to bargain for the Program and Administrative Services (PA) and Frontière/Border Services (FB) units was served on February 21, 2007 and the notice for Technical Services (TC) sent on February 22.

Notice to bargain for the Education and Library Science (EB) unit was served on March 1, 2007 while the notice for the Operational Services (SV) unit will be served on April 5, 2007.

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The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), and the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada (PSHRMAC) invite you to apply to join our team of facilitators for the PSAC-PSHRMAC Joint Learning Program (JLP).

Selection criteria include:

• skills (or potential) to facilitate experiential learning activities;
• commitment to the JLP goal of effective union-management relations through joint learning;
• credibility with the PSAC and the employer;
• commitment and availability to prepare and deliver a minimum of five JLP workshops.

For more information, and an online application, visit the JLP website.

The delegates to the National Bargaining Conference (NBC) represent over 95,000 workers at Treasury Board and Parks Canada. They were elected and/or selcted from amongst those attending Regional Bargaining Conferences held late last year in Montreal and Vancouver.

Hundreds of members from the PA (Table 1), SV (Table 2), TC (Table 3), EB (Table 5) and FB bargaining units throughout Canada submitted bargaining proposals to their Locals. Following a review by the Components, these proposals were sorted by bargaining unit for analysis by the National Bargaining Conference TB delegates.

One of the final steps in preparation towards the next round of bargaining with the government of Canada, the National Bargaining Conference for Treasury Board and Parks Canada units will start next Thursday, February 1, in Ottawa.

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As soon as the Western Regional Bargaining Conference came to an end in Vancouver on December 3, the PSAC began to focus its efforts on the National Conference to be held in Ottawa in February 2007.

Much like their sisters and brothers had done in Montreal in November, some 175 delegates gathered in Vancouver to discuss, on December 2 and 3, strategies that will guide the next round of bargaining affecting 90 000 members at Treasury Board and 5 000 members at Parks Canada. They were also given an overview of the impact of the PSLRA on the upcoming round.

Delegates from BC chosen at the Conference to represent members at the National Bargaining Conference:

• PA: Megan Adam, Virginia Vaillancourt, Sargy Chima, alternate
• SV: Randy Sanderson, Melvin Dureen, Gino Chicorelli, alternate
• EB: Gord Miller, Céline Bélanger
• TC: Darrell-Lee McKenzie, Peter Wills, Todd Genereux, alternate
• FB: Carolyn McGillivray, Alex Bishop, Sean McGovern, Karim Lawji, and Dan Sullivan alternate. (corrected)
• Parks Canada (Western Region): Kevin King, Omar Murray, Carrie Docken, Andre Paul, Patrick Harvey, Jeanne Freer, Lisbeth Edwards and Susan Kjartanson, alternates

More details and photos at the national website.