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Join the World Social Forum in August

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Another world is needed: Together it is possible!

The World Social Forum (WSF) is a gathering of civil society, including workers and trade unions to find collective solutions to common problems.  The first WSF took place in 2001 in Puerto Alegre, Brazil.  This year, the WSF will take place in Montreal from August 9-14, 2016. The theme is “Another world is needed: together it is possible”.

This is the first time that the World Social Forum takes place in North America.  Thousands are expected to attend the 1,200 workshops offered on Université du Québec (UQAM), McGill, and CÉGEP du Vieux-Montréal campuses and outdoor sites.

Activities

On August 9, the WSF will open with a massive march leaving Parc Lafontaine at 5:30 pm, followed by an opening ceremony in downtown Montreal.

Throughout the rest of the week, there will be:

  • workshop discussions,
  • round tables,
  • conferences,
  • debates on controversial topics,
  • artistic performances,
  • cultural activities, and
  • convergence assemblies.

PSAC members are invited to join this important event. If you can’t attend, follow us on social media during the event for updates (#WSF2016).

PSAC is sponsoring some members to attend. For information on being sponsored to attend, contact your regional office.

For more information, check out the World Social Forum website.

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Are you using your employer’s email system for union business?

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As elected officers of the union, your communication with the union and with the members you represent is important and confidential. The first thing you should do – if you have not already – is secure a personal email for all union correspondence.

“But I mostly deal with members at work, so why can’t I just use my work email?”

While it may appear convenient, the email system at your work belongs to the employer. Under some circumstances, that means they can access your emails – even union-related – which can result in an embarrassing situation if confidentiality between you and your members is compromised.

There is also a greater chance for error. You could type someone’s name and press send to someone with the same name as a fellow member but accidentally send the email to management. Your contact list at work is different from your personal contact list.

A personal email address protects you and anyone with whom you discuss union business.

There are many providers of free email access and most sites that host them are not blocked by your employer’s network. If you have questions about where to sign up, please feel free to contact us at communications@une-sen.org. We’re here to help keep your union communications confidential.

 

 

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Regional Seminar – Manitoba & Saskatchewan

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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, September 30, 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, August 19, 2016. Unfortunately, we cannot consider late registrations.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE

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

In solidarity,

Your regional teams:

Manitoba

Chris Little-Gagné, Regional Vice-President, Manitoba
Martin Kaminski, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Manitoba
Melody Raabe, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Manitoba
Jacqueline Nanali, Regional Representative for Human Rights, Manitoba

Saskatchewan

Omar Murray, Regional Vice-President, Saskatchewan
Gloria Pfeifer, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Saskatchewan
Janette Husak, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Saskatchewan
Sandra Ahenakew, Regional Representative for Human Rights, Saskatchewan

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Quebec Regional Seminar

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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, September 16, 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, August 12, 2016. Unfortunately, we cannot consider late registrations.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE

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

In solidarity,

Your regional team:

Yvon Beaudoin, Regional Vice-President, Québec
Yann Boudreau, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Québec
Géraldine Fortin, Assistant Regional Vice-President, Québec
Keith Lemoine, Regional Representative for Human Rights, Québec

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Parks bargaining team raises pay issues, rejects short term disability proposal

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Our Parks negotiating team met with the employer’s team on June 28 and 29, 2016.

We opened our discussions by expressing our dismay and anger toward the agency regarding the ongoing pay issues. We concluded our discussion by advising the agency that pay day should be not be a stressful event. Meanwhile, PSAC, along with other federal government unions representing thousands of federal government employees filed a Notice of Application with the Federal Court directing the Respondent to implement a pay administration system that meets its obligations under the FAA and the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment.

The agency tabled a revised short term disability proposal to replace our current sick leave provisions. Similar to the proposals tabled with other groups recently, the agency’s proposal would remove sick leave provisions from the current collective agreement and short term disability would be administered as an agency policy. Our negotiating team remains committed to resisting this concession and rejected the agency’s proposal.

Negotiations are set to resume on October 24-27 and November 14-17, 2016.

Our negotiating team thanks you for your ongoing patience and support.

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Unions file court application to force federal government to pay workers impacted by Phoenix pay system

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PSAC, along with other federal government unions representing thousands of federal government employees filed a Notice of Application with the Federal Court today.

The unions are seeking a court order directing the Respondent to implement a pay administration system that meets its obligations under theFAA and the Directive on Terms and Conditions of Employment.

The federal government is responsible for paying public service workers on time for the work they do. The unions are demanding that the federal government meet its legal duty to provide timely and accurate pay for public service employees.

Pay system not working

The new Phoenix pay system is not working and hurting many public service workers. It is also putting excessive stress on the employees who process pay under the new system. Since its implementation, Phoenix has exhibited ongoing and significant systemic problems in the administration of pay for public service employees.

The application states Phoenix has resulted in the following pay system problems

  •          Outright failure to pay employees
  •          Delayed and inaccurate payments
  •          Failure to pay overtime and extra duty pay
  •          Failure to process information necessary for disability insurance, employment insurance and pension payments.

The unions argue that these ongoing circumstances raise concerns that affect all public service employees, constitute a breach of the employer’s duty to provide timely and accurate pay for public service employees.

Unions involved in this application

Association of Justice Counsel, Canadian Association of Professional Employees, Canadian Federal Pilots Association, Canadian Merchant Service Guild, Canadian Military Colleges Faculty Association, Federal Government Dockyard Chargehands Association, Federal Government Dockyard Trades and Labour Council (West), Federal Government Dockyard Trades and Labour Council (East), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Profession Association of Foreign Service Officers, Public Service Alliance of Canada, Research Council Employees’ Association, Unifor

Background: PSAC letter writing campaign

PSAC has called on its members and public service workers to send a letter to Minister Foote urgently calling for the Phoenix pay system to be fixed immediately. So far more than 2000 letters have been sent documenting serious issues.

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Canadian Multiculturalism Day

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By: Shirley Torres

Diversity, unity, solidarity, mosaic, community, society, harmony, togetherness, equality: These are only some of the many words that are parallel to multiculturalism. Multiculturalism is a blend of different languages, religion, race, colour, custom and tradition. Multiculturalism is the world.

Canada is a world within the world. It is a melting pot of different cultures. It is home to many people of diverse ethnic backgrounds but people having the same aspirations and dreams. They live and work here to build their future, to pursue their dreams, striving, working hard and sometimes struggling to achieve their goals and by doing so, contributing to the development of their communities, the society and the country, culturally, economically and politically.

In 1971, Canada, the first in the world, adopted multiculturalism as an official policy. This was formalized when on July 21, 1988 the Canadian Multiculturalism Act was passed “to promote the full and equitable participation of individuals and communities of all origins in the continuing evolution and shaping of all aspects of Canadian society”. By Royal Proclamation, on November 13, 2002, June 27 of each year was designated as Canadian Multiculturalism Day. We celebrate this day to learn more about each other’s culture, to be proud of our own and to have a better understanding and acceptance of the diversity in our society.  This is a celebration of diversity, Canada’s strength.

June 27 is a day of recognizing, appreciating and celebrating each other’s culture. It is a day to pay tribute to everyone’s continuous contribution in building a stronger, united, diverse Canada.

Happy Multiculturalism Day!

Shirley Torres is the UNE Human Rights Representative for the B.C. and Yukon region.

 

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UNE Staffing Announcement

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It is with great pleasure that we announce the addition of Emma Sauvé to the Union of National Employees team.

Emma joins us as an administrative assistant, replacing Emily Gault-Due who is away on maternity leave. Over the years, Emma has worked in logistics and administration.

We wish Emily and her family all the best with their new addition.

You can find all staff contact information here.

Welcome to the team, Emma.