Health Care Bargaining Update - Bulletin #5
June 24, 2013 at 11:52 AM
CUPE continues to bargain for a new collective agreement for health care locals under the central bargaining table.
CUPE has been meeting with the employer group for over six months. Due to the employer’s insistence that we need to resolve the non-monetary issues before discussing the monetary issues, we have not yet discussed monetary proposals.
Some of the employer’s proposals still on the table relate to:
a) Limiting the Union’s ability to represent our members in grievance and disciplinary meetings;
b) Limiting an employee’s entitlement to ‘pre-retirement leave’ and vacation entitlement;
c) Reducing the posting time for vacant positions (under certain circumstances);
d) Limiting employees ability to book medical appointments on work time;
e) Capping the total amount of income protection an employee is eligible to use for any one incident to 119 days. This is regardless of whether or not you are entitled to long-term disability at that time.;
f) Capping family illness leave to five days per year;
g) Being able to return to your former position during your trial period would be at the sole discretion of the employer;
h) Limiting overtime pay for part-time employees who work overtime on their days off;
i) Limiting when an employee is entitled to overtime;
j) Capping vacation entitlement for any employee to a maximum of three weeks during summer months - June 1st to September 30th;
k) Eliminating the just cause requirement for disciplining and/or discharging probationary employees;
l) Requiring an employee’s annual wage increments to be subject to a ‘good employment record’.
The employer has advised us that many of these proposals are ‘Standard Language’ required to ensure consistency across health care, but most collective agreements do not contain these provisions. CUPE is resolved to push back against concessions tabled by the employer.
The employer advised CUPE at the meeting held on Tuesday, May 28th that they would be contacting the provincial government’s conciliation officer to engage in a process that will seek to find resolution to outstanding issues. We will be meeting with the provincial conciliation officer on June 21st to discuss how to move this process forward.
CUPE will not accept concessions at the bargaining table. Please continue to visit www.phcc.cupe.ca as this process continues. We would like to thank all members for their patience during this long process.
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Your Provincial Health Care Council and Bargaining Committee is: Val Sobiak (Chair), Gwen Bennett, Debbie Boissonneault, Marion Butterfield, Morgan Chagnon, Barbara Greengrass, Demi Kuzyk-Bernier, Judy Lavallée, Yvon Leclerc, Ric McAlpine, Marie Nixon, John Reynolds, Marian Sawyer |
