Tag Archives: FB

The FB bargaining team needs your support!

The FB bargaining team is back at the bargaining table this week!

As a show of support for our team, we are asking all our members to proudly wear or display their union swag (epaulets, laces, wristband, mug, etc.) and to keep them displayed until the union reaches a tentative agreement.

We also invite our members to send photos of them wearing or displaying their union swag at comms@ciu-sdi.ca.

Note: By sending in their photos, members agree that CIU may publish these photos online, including its website and social media pages. Those who wear a name tag should remove or hide it before taking a picture.

FB Bargaining: PSAC-CIU protects bargaining unit work

Buckling under legal pressure from PSAC-CIU, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has stopped contracting out the work of trained border services officers to students at ports of entry in Toronto.

In July, CBSA management in Toronto implemented new shifts staffed exclusively by students after PSAC-CIU members refused to enter into talks on a temporary variable shift schedule arrangement (VSSA) due to concerns that management would abuse the agreement.

As a result, PSAC took legal action and filed an unfair labour practice complaint with the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board against the CBSA and Treasury Board.

Staffing our ports of entry with trained CBSA border services officers is the only way to ensure the safety of Canadians and our borders.

In light of the legal action taken by PSAC-CIU, CBSA in Toronto has reversed the changes made in July. PSAC will therefore be withdrawing its complaint.

Our bargaining team has made proposals in national negotiations concerning protections against unilateral changes to scheduling and to protect our bargaining unit work. To be clear, PSAC-CIU is not opposed to students receiving training and work experience opportunities. But our proposals would protect against students being used as cheap labour by CBSA. Students should never replace trained officers at CBSA ports of entry.

The legislation states that all matters subject to negotiation are frozen until such time as the parties reach a new agreement. This means that our current terms and conditions are frozen, unless the union consents to changes CBSA wants to make. We were not consulted on the changes made. We are opposed to BSOs being replaced by students. We do not agree with CBSA’s scheduling changes.

Other legal challenges against CBSA

Our legal challenges over CBSA’s contracting out the work of Border Services Officers to Commissionaires at Pearson International Airport and changes made to shifts at Postal Operations in Vancouver are ongoing. We are also in mediation on complaints related to leave with income averaging and compressed schedules. Our dispute concerning CBSA’s name tag policy is still ongoing.

We will continue to pursue legal action against CBSA until such time as the employer complies with its legal and contractual obligations.

To review the package of bargaining proposals that we tabled as well as those of the employer, visit the PSAC page for the FB page group. We’ll announce new bargaining dates when they’re available and continue to provide updates throughout the bargaining process.

The original version of this article was first posted on the PSAC website.

FB team begins talks on economic proposals with Treasury Board/CBSA

Our PSAC/CIU FB bargaining team addressed a number of economic proposals with the employer during bargaining the week of September 21. In addition to reiterating our position concerning the need for pension reform, we raised the following:

A paid meal period;
A much-needed increase in shift and weekend premiums;
A fitness allowance;
Two shifts of paid firearm practice time per year;
A plain clothes allowance for EIOD staff and Hearings Officers.

We also discussed our proposals to ensure better access to leave with income averaging as well as telework.

On the issue of telework, during the pandemic, we once again asked the employer if T2200 tax forms – which certify that an employee is required to work from home and lets them claim certain expenses on their tax return – would be provided to staff working at remote locations. The employer indicated that this had to be done in consultation with Canada Revenue Agency, and Treasury Board made a commitment to provide the forms before the end of the tax year.

Lastly, the parties spent time discussing our proposals regarding the grievance procedure. The current grievance process is dysfunctional and takes far too long. In this round of negotiations, we are pushing to streamline the grievance process with CBSA, and have made it clear that it is a priority for our team.

Calgary Airport Border Officers wearing orange epaulets in solidarity

Solidarity with our Sisters and Brothers at Calgary Air (and across the country) wearing their union epaulets in support of a fair contract! We will keep up the fight for the agreement that we deserve.

To review the package of proposals that we tabled as well as those of the employer, visit the FB group page. We’ll announce new bargaining dates when they’re available and continue to provide updates throughout the bargaining process.

The original version of this article was first posted on the PSAC website.

FB bargaining update

Yesterday afternoon, PSAC contacted Treasury Board to demand an update with respect to the assigning of a new employer negotiator for the FB group.

Our bargaining team is looking to confirm dates with the employer so that we might get back to the bargaining table and get our issues addressed by CBSA and the Treasury Board.

We will be sure to update as things progress.

FB bargaining dates set; all PSAC members at CBSA to receive Phoenix damages

All PSAC members working at Canada Border Services Agency will receive Phoenix damages compensation while bargaining continues for FB members.

Last year, PSAC rejected the government’s meagre Phoenix settlement offer of five days of cashable leave because it wasn’t equitable and was far too little to compensate for the damage caused by the disastrous pay system.

Instead, PSAC negotiated a far better Phoenix damages agreement that provides a $2,500 lump sum payment to be distributed to all PSAC members who have been directly or indirectly impacted by the Phoenix pay system. This new agreement is a substantial improvement from the five days of leave accepted by CSN/UCCO-SACC, PIPSC and all other federal bargaining agents.

The agreement – which all PSAC members at CBSA will receive independent of the bargaining process – will help make PSAC members whole for over four years of hardships caused by the Phoenix pay system.

The agreement has three main elements:

General damages compensation for all (i.e.: the $2,500 lump sum);
An improvement to the current claims process for out-of-pocket expenses and financial losses;
Compensation for severe impacts and other demonstrable cases.

Due to the work required to implement new collective agreements and retroactive pay for over 120,000 PSAC members, we anticipate a delay, but the employer has committed to balancing these priorities in order to process Phoenix damages as soon as possible.

For greater details please read our summary of the deal and review our FAQ.

Dates set for FB negotiations

Our bargaining team is scheduled to return to negotiations from September 23 to 25. We remain at odds with CBSA/Treasury Board over several issues – from shift scheduling and firearm practice time to leave with income averaging and protections against excessive discipline on the part of CBSA management. Due to the timeline of the previous round of bargaining, we are currently at an earlier stage in the process compared to other federal tables that recently reached tentative agreements.

As always, we are committed to achieving a fair contract that makes CBSA a better place to work.

To review the package of proposals that we tabled as well as those of the employer, visit psacunion.ca/fb-group and ciu-sdi.ca/issue/fb-group-bargaining. We’ll continue to provide updates throughout the bargaining process.

The original version of this article was first posted on the PSAC website.