Bargaining paused until Employer prepared to table monetary proposals
Your negotiating team met with the Employer on June 1st, at which time we concluded our discussions on non-monetary items for the time being. We did not sign off any additional articles.
We are now awaiting the Employer's monetary proposal, and we will revisit the outstanding non-monetary items as part of the broader negotiations on wages, benefits and other monetary items. (See below for a list of outstanding non-monetary items. You can also see the list of agreed non-monetary items from our April bargaining update.)
The Employer expects to be able to table their monetary proposals at our next bargaining date, scheduled for October 7, with confirmed dates to continue negotiations on October 28 and 29th.
Remember that your current collective agreement remains in full force and effect. If you experience problems at work, please contact AUPE’s Member Resource Centre at 1-800-232-7284 and they will connect you with your Membership Services Officer.
If you have any questions or concerns about bargaining, please reach out to a member of your negotiating committee.
Living Waters Catholic Schools Negotiating Committee
Sarah Cross (Slave Lake) E-mail: crossar@hotmail.com
Jane Arndt (Edson) E-mail: janearndt75@gmail.com Cell: 780-725-1912 Home: 780-723-4037
Laurie Martinot (Whitecourt) E-mail: lmartino@telusplanet.net Cell 780-706-5857
AUPE Resource Staff
Merryn Edwards,Negotiations E-mail: m.edwards@aupe.org or 780-952-1951 (cell)
Tracy Noble, Organizing t.noble@aupe.org or 306-304-2853 (cell)
Mimi Williams, Communications m.williams@aupe.org
Outstanding non-monetary items
(please refer to the April 26 bargaining update for a list of agreed to non-monetary items)
Article 2: Application - There are no proposals on this article from either side, but the Employer does not want to sign it off until the Salary Schedule, which is referenced in this article, is agreed to.
Article 4: Union Jurisdiction and Recognition - The Employer is not in agreement with the Union's proposals to 1) clarify that "all Employees, except teachers" are in the bargaining unit, as well as seeking to understand why administrative staff have not previously been included, and 2) specify that union bulletin boards should be available "at each worksite."
Article 6: Time Off for Union Business - The Employer is not in agreement with the Union's proposal to increase from one to two years the length of a leave of absence in the case of a union member elected to a full-time position (President, Secretary-treasurer, Vice President), to match the 2 year term for such positions.
Article 8: Respect in the Workplace - The Employer does not want to extend current language as the Union has proposed, to detail the process and timelines for members making complaints of bullying, harassment, discrimination and violence, and to institute a 90 day timeline for the employer to respond to formal complaints.
Article 9: Probationary Period - The Union is not in agreement with the Employer's proposal to extend the probationary period by any time that the Employee is not working. The Employer is not in agreement to amend provisions to extend probation by mutual agreement (instead of a unilateral decision by the Employer).
Article 10: Discipline - The Employer is not in agreement to shorten the "sunset" on discipline removed from personnel files from two years to 18 months. There is agreement on shortening the length of the "trial period" for Employees moving into different positions from 9 months to 6 months, but the issue of extending that period by any days not worked (as with the Employer's proposal to extend probation above) is still outstanding.
Article 12: Vacancies - There is agreement on revising the posting provisions, but the Employer is not in agreement that internal candidates should have preference over external applicants.
Article 21: Seniority - There is agreement on extending seniority back to the start of a temporary position, if an Employee moves into a permanent without a break in service (other than the summer layoff). There is also agreement to extend the time that Employees have to respond to recall from five to seven calendar days. However, the Employer is not in agreement with the Union's proposal to correct errors on the seniority list as they are discovered.
Article 22: Layoff and Recall - There is agreement on steps to be taken prior to any layoffs to minimize the impact on Employees and provide information to the Union. There is also agreement on allowing laid off Employees to accept casual work without affecting their recall rights. However, the Employer is not in agreement with the Union's proposal that Employees would provide their preferred method of contact for recall and, if they cannot be reached in that way, the Employer would follow up with a recall notice by registered mail.
NEW: Letter of Understanding on Workload - The Employer is not in agreement with the Union's proposal for Employees to file a workload appeal.