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Phoenix Pay System and Grievances

PhoenixGrievances

What PSAC is doing

The PSAC is taking a number of high level steps to push for the earliest possible fixes to the problems at the Phoenix Pay System:

  • Regular meetings with Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) management
  • Letter-writing campaign to PSPC Minister Judy Foote proposing high level intervention from the government to fix the problems
  • Filing a policy grievance to address the problems with training, workload and other adverse impacts on the compensation workers in Miramichi
  • Filing an unfair labour practice complaint with the labour relations board with respect to the new system’s failure to pay employees on time and accurately

What Members should do

By following these steps, most employees will have their issues resolved more quickly than going through the departmental grievance process.

  1. Contact your manager to confirm your paperwork was sent to the Pay Centre. If it was not, acquire the paperwork to request a salary advance and follow up with your manager to send the paperwork. It is also important that you advise your human resources department right away.
  2. If the paperwork was sent, call the Pay Centre at 1-855-686-4729 to speak to an agent about your file.
  3. If the compensation advisor doesn’t follow up within three days or you are unsatisfied with their response, contact the Client Satisfaction Bureau.
  4. Send us an email at info@une-sen.org so that we can work together with the employer and make certain our members are being paid. Please have members email details of their issue, their PRI number and a short statement indicating they consent to the union sharing their information with PSPC.

 Specific hardship cases

The Pay Centre is experiencing a particularly high level of problems processing pay for more vulnerable employees, such as those on gradual return to work from Sun Life due to disability, those on maternity and parental leave, and new hires. In these cases, grievances should be actively considered for any member who suffers serious financial damages.

If you believe a member needs to file such a grievance, please contact your UNE regional team.

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UNE Members See Roles Expanding on Parliament Hill

Scanners

When you visit Parliament Hill, either for a tour or to take part in committee meetings, your first point of contact is someone called a security scanner. Much like you encounter at the airport, this person plays a vital role by scanning briefcases and backpacks and waving a wand to ensure the security of all visitors. Scanners are members of the Union of National Employees and they are on the verge of playing an even more important role in increased security measures on the Hill.

Effective July 11, 2016, scanners will be replacing the existing RCMP officers, taking on the responsibilities of additional physical and electronic searches of vehicles entering Parliament Hill. They are trained to use sophisticated electronic technology including x-ray and explosive material detection in vehicles and of their occupants. The additional work for scanners will entail incorporating a 24-7-365 shift operation. As a result, there will be an increase from 44 members in 2015 to approximately 130 members by the time the vehicle scanning facility conversion is implemented in July 2016. Training and hiring of new employees is ongoing.

In 2018, Parliamentary Protective Services is planning to open its Visitor Welcoming Centre (VWC), which will become the primary controlled access point to Parliament Hill for all visitors and employees. UNE members, the scanners, will be an integral part of the VWC when it opens.

“This is yet another example of UNE members performing important, meaningful work,” said UNE president Doug Marshall. “The scanners have proven over the years that they are capable professionals and these new changes show the employer’s confidence that they are ready to take on additional roles and responsibilities.”

Are you a UNE member who wants to share a story about your workplace? We want to hear and share with the rest of the membership. Please contact Greg McNamara, Communications & Research Officer at greg.mcnamara@une-sen.org.

 

 

 

 

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Members at Museum of Nature ratify new collective agreement

MuseumNatureRatify

The members of PSAC Local 70395 recently voted in favour of the agreement negotiated with the Canadian Museum of Nature. The Local had been in negotiations for the last 2 years.

Highlights of the four-year contract, which expires June 14, 2018, include:

  • a 1% wage increase per year,
  • an increase in standby pay, and
  • a change in the definition of part-time employees.

Just as importantly, the Local was able to achieve its bargaining mandate of no concessions in the collective agreement / bargaining process.

“Reaching an agreement was a long process and the negotiation team worked hard to protect and improve our collective agreement,” said Local President Roger Bull. “We offer them sincere thanks for their efforts on behalf of all members.”

Local 70395 represents approximately 100 workers employed by the Canadian Museum of Nature in Gatineau and Ottawa. They work in the areas of administration, advancement, collections, experience and education, facilities, finance, human resources, IT, marketing and media relations protection services, research and visitor services.

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Ontario Regional Seminar

RegSemONT600x375

Your regional seminar is fast approaching and it’s the best place to learn about our union and the many things we do.

This event is jam-packed with lectures and workshops to help you gain the knowledge and confidence you’ll need to help our members. It’s also a great place to meet active members just like you and forge long-lasting friendships.

For a sneak-peek at what else we have in store for you, check out the agenda.

Participants should arrive between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. on Friday, August 19, 2016 to register. You should select representatives from your Local to attend the seminar. The Union of National Employees will fund two delegates per Local as well as one youth:

  1. One delegate should be the local president or designate.
  2. The second delegate should be a member who has not previously attended a UNE conference or seminar.
  3. One delegate from each local should be a youth delegate. (A youth delegate is defined as a member who will be 35 years or younger on December 31, 2017.)

During the seminar, youth delegates will elect two of their peers to represent them as delegates to our 2017 convention.

You must register by Friday, July 8, 2016. Unfortunately, we cannot consider late registrations.

Should you have any questions, please contact Suzanne Boucher at: suzanne.boucher@une-sen.org.

In solidarity,

Your regional team:

Mary Anne Walker, Regional Vice-President, Ontario
Diane Levola, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Ontario
Andrew Shaver, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Ontario
Craig Reynolds, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Ontario
Sandy Bello, Regional Representative for Human Rights, Ontario

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Bill C4, division 17 to be repealed

C4Repealed

The president of the Treasury Board, Minister Scott Brison today informed PSAC that the Liberals will be repealing the Harper government’s Bill C4, division 17 that restricted our members’ rights to collective bargaining.

“We recognize this as an attempt to correct some of the harm done by the Conservatives. We are looking forward to further discussions to ensure that this round of bargaining will be conducted in a fair manner,” said Robyn Benson, PSAC National President.

“PSAC has asserted that Bill C4 is an attack on our members’ fundamental charter rights and not consistent with a free and democratic society.”

“Our members worked tirelessly to lobby members of parliament about the injustices of this Bill. I want to thank them for their continued vigilance,” concluded Benson.

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June 8: Support your bargaining teams!

June8

PSAC and other federal public service unions are calling on all members to help send a message to the new Liberal government by participating in a national action on June 8th.

  • The new Liberal government promised respect for federal public service employees. It said it would do things differently than the former Conservative government. Yet, it has been more than six months since the Liberals were elected and there has been no meaningful progress at any of the federal bargaining tables.
  • Treasury Board negotiators are still pushing the Conservative’s proposal to replace our sick leave with a short term disability plan.
  • They have proposed the same 0.5% per-year wage increase as the Conservative government. This does not reflect the cost of living and fair wage increases.

The Liberals have also failed to restore fair collective bargaining by refusing to repeal the unfair labour laws passed by the Conservatives.

Why is action needed?

PSAC’s bargaining teams have been at the bargaining table with Treasury Board three times since the new government came into power. We are also in bargaining with Parks Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and an important vote is underway at CRA. We need to tell the government to come to the table with new proposals – not recycled Conservative messages. A new government should give itself a new mandate.

The outcome of Treasury Board bargaining will set a pattern for others.  We need to send a message to the Liberal government before bargaining resumes in June that we expect a fair contract.

It’s time for members to send a message!

  • Contact your local union right away to find out what is planned for your workplace on June 8th.
  • Join together with members of all federal unions and show the Liberal government you expect it to live up to its promise of respect.
  • Go to psacunion.ca and sign up to receive more information about June 8th
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Bargaining Team Tables Demands with Canadian Museum for Human Rights

cmhrBargainUpdate

Parties exchange proposals, additional bargaining dates scheduled for next month.

On Wednesday and Thursday our Negotiating Team met with representatives of the Museum to exchange bargaining proposals. The parties’ proposals focused primarily on non-economic matters. We will be tabling wage and other economic proposals later in the process once we receive payroll data from the employer. Our team tabled demands covering key priorities, and made clear to management that a number of issues need to be addressed in this round of negotiations, including:

Protecting our Jobs: Protections against layoff, and additional protections against the contracting out of our work.

Improved Income Security: We have tabled proposals that would provide more stable, permanent employment and protect against precarious work.

Hours of Work: Enhanced rights for workers in context of scheduling, particularly for shift workers and front-line staff.

Staffing: Staffing processes that would ensure fairness and provide preference for internal, qualified candidates for the filing of vacancies.

Parity with Other Museum and Arts-Related Employers: Proposals that would ensure that rights and protections found in other PSAC collective agreements in the federal museum and arts-related sector would apply to workers at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

Management also tabled the Museum’s proposals. We are next scheduled to meet the last week of May. If you have questions, or wish to see a copy of our proposals or those of the Museum, contact a member of our Negotiating Team: Travis Tomchuk (Research and Curation), Kendall McLean (Visitor Experience) and Isabelle Masson (Research and Curation). There will be regular updates as things progress.

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Changes to UNE Locals 70044 and 70125 – Global Affairs Canada

ChangesToGAC

Following the restructuring of departments that affected employees who worked at the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Canadian International Development Agency, the Union of National Employees received a request from the executives of locals 70044 and 70125 that membership be re-organized according to classification. Membership has historically been based on the two departments but the merger complicated this approach.

After consultation with the local executives and approval by the national executive in January 2016, a new strategy for assigning members to the locals is now in full effect.

The national executive will evaluate the success of the local re-organization in January 2017.

As a result of this motion, some members have now changed locals. The following is a breakdown of the re-organized locals and the classifications belonging to each:

70044 70125
CR

ED

PM

IS

 AS

DD

EG

GS

GT

LS

The restructuring will result in no changes to members’ local dues.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a member of the local executives:

http://une-sen.org/70044

http://une-sen.org/70125