Tag Archives: FB

PSAC filing legal challenge against Canada Border Services Agency

Earlier this month, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) management at Toronto Postal Operations created new shifts and began assigning students – without managerial supervision – to work these shifts. CBSA management has also refused to offer these shifts as overtime to Border Services Officers (BSOs).

Our PSAC-CIU bargaining team has made proposals in national negotiations concerning protections against unilateral changes to schedules and to protect our bargaining unit work. We’re in favour of students getting training and opportunities for work experience, but they should not be used to replace trained officers at CBSA ports of entry. Our proposals in negotiations would ensure that students are not being used as cheap labour by the employer.

Labour law guarantees that while we are in bargaining, our current terms and conditions are frozen, unless the union consents to changes CBSA wants to make. We are opposed to BSOs being replaced by students. We do not agree with CBSA’s scheduling changes.

As a result, PSAC has filed a statutory freeze complaint with the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board against CBSA and Treasury Board.

PSAC will also be taking legal action against CBSA over unilateral scheduling changes implemented at the Vancouver International Mail Centre.

We will uphold and defend our rights.

Negotiations

Last month, Treasury Board announced that its negotiator for the FB group is leaving. After our bargaining team reached out to Treasury Board demanding an update, we were notified that a replacement has been hired. We’ve proposed dates in September to resume negotiations. We are ready to get back the table and get CBSA/Treasury Board moving on workplace issues that need to be addressed.

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.

FB bargaining on hold until new employer negotiator is assigned

Our FB bargaining team met with Canada Border Services Agency/Treasury Board last month in virtual contract talks. Our team was scheduled to meet with them again in July, but the Treasury Board negotiator assigned to the FB bargaining unit is no longer representing the employer.

Consequently, our dates for next month have been postponed while a new negotiator is assigned by Treasury Board. We have notified the employer that our team is prepared to schedule dates during the summer once a new negotiator is assigned. We’ll provide an update once we have more information.

FB bargaining: CBSA members on the front lines of COVID-19 deserve better

PSAC/CIU Border Services members continue to play a pivotal role in Canada’s response to COVID-19, repatriating Canadians returning home from abroad and screening travellers at the border.

Despite their ongoing efforts, CBSA management still refuses to make meaningful progress towards a new collective agreement for more than 9,000 border services officers, investigators and headquarters staff.

During bargaining via teleconference May 12-14, our PSAC/CIU bargaining team made it clear that it is time the government addresses core workplace issues we’ve raised in negotiations concerning excessive discipline in CBSA workplaces, and crucial scheduling issues. The same is true with respect to parity with the broader law enforcement community, including much-needed pension reform.

Telework

We also raised our telework proposals with the employer. Given the reality that so many of our members are now teleworking during this crisis, it only stands to reason that our collective agreement finally addresses this issue for our non-uniformed members.

Technological change

Our team spoke to our proposals concerning technological change. We are looking for language in our collective agreement that would ensure meaningful consultation with PSAC-CIU on any changes, and that no bargaining unit jobs be lost due to technological change. The COVID-19 crisis has again shown that machines cannot do the job of trained CBSA officers.

Workplace protections

CBSA rejected our proposals for protections against surveillance in CBSA workplaces and when officers are asked to remove their tools. We explained that we are maintaining our position on these issues. New protections are needed against CBSA management in our collective agreement.

PSAC prepared to take legal action against CBSA

Recently, CBSA announced its plan to unilaterally change scheduling practices in Toronto, despite opposition from the union and our members. As a result, PSAC put Treasury Board/CBSA on notice this week that it will take legal action if such changes are implemented.

Our team also indicated that PSAC legal counsel will take action should CBSA proceed with changes to the escort and removal procedures that undermine our work and our rights under the collective agreement. We will uphold our rights.

Parity with law enforcement community

Our review of recent law enforcement wage settlements across Canada is ongoing – including our monitoring of wage talks for a first collective agreement for RCMP officers. Wage trends for 1st Class Constables at the RCMP are critical for comparative analysis to our group. Once the analysis is complete, we will commence wage discussions with the employer.

We also raised with management this week the issue of employees being provided T2200 forms for claiming home office expenses with the Canada Revenue Agency. The employer indicated that it is working on the issue.

We are in the process of setting additional dates with the employer.

To review the package of proposals that we tabled as well as those of the employer, visit psacunion.ca/fb-group. We’ll continue to provide updates throughout the bargaining process. To see other updates on Treasury Board bargaining, check out psacunion.ca/treasury-board.

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

FB bargaining: No evidence of ‘culture change’ at CBSA

The FB bargaining team continued to push for greater protections against harassment and abuse of authority by management during negotiations with Treasury Board/Canada Border Services Agency March 9-12.

Yet despite buzzwords like promoting inclusion, respectfulness and the elimination of harassment in CBSA’s 2020-2021 Department Plan – unveiled this week – there was little evidence of a tonal shift on these or other issues at the bargaining table.

Our team made proposals to enhance protections against abuse of authority and harassment, but management still hasn’t agreed to any of these changes. CBSA is taking the position that language in our contract should continue to be limited largely to sexual harassment. We can’t accept this, as we believe our collective agreement should address all forms of harassment, not just sexual harassment.

We also spoke to our proposed expansion of protections against CBSA management’s heavy-handedness in dealing with our members – including discipline and the arbitrary removal of defensive equipment. There will need to be new protections on these issues in our collective agreement.

There can be no ‘culture change’ without real action

The departmental plan also refers to a long-term reduction in CBSA staff. Our members are already short-staffed and spread thin; PSAC-CIU are prepared to fight any move to reduce staff.

Lastly, the plan speaks of ‘leveraging technology to enable flexibility’, yet CBSA refuses to reinstate fair and reasonable telework practices for Trade Compliance Officers and other non-uniformed personnel.

With respect to wages, our review of recent law enforcement wage settlements across Canada is ongoing – including our monitoring of contract talks for a first collective agreement for RCMP officers. Our position has always been that FB 3s should be matched to RCMP 1^st class constables. In past rounds of bargaining, we’ve always reached agreements with full retroactive wage increases for our members. We have no intention of doing otherwise this round.

We’ll be returning to the table in early May and are in discussions for additional dates into the summer.

We’ll provide updates as bargaining continues. To review the package of proposals that we’ve tabled, and those of the employer, click here.

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

FB Bargaining: Parties discuss discipline, harassment, pension reform

Our PSAC-CIU Bargaining Team for the FB group met with Treasury Board/CBSA the week of February 24 to continue negotiations for a new collective agreement.

Despite comments recently made by CBSA’s National President about the need for ‘culture change’ and ‘less jargon’, our Bargaining Team saw no evidence of this at the bargaining table.

According to the report recently issued by the Office of the Auditor General, harassment is a problem at CBSA. The Agency has publicly acknowledged this to be true. While the union has made proposals to enhance the collective agreement and has suggested changes that would protect members against abuse of authority and harassment, management has to date opposed the union’s proposed changes. This is unacceptable.

The language used in the proposals that aim to protect CIU members against CBSA management in the context of discipline reflects what has been agreed to by other employers.

Our fight regarding the wearing of name tags continues. We questioned the CBSA requirement that names must appear on the tags as opposed to a number. The PSAC also brought this issue before the Occupational Health and Safety Tribunal last week.

It’s time CBSA put its money where its mouth is on these issues and treated our members with respect.

CIU National President Jean-Pierre Fortin met with Minister Bill Blair this week and raised (among other things) the need for 25-and-out pension reform for FBs and the timely resolution of outstanding grievances. At the bargaining table, the FB Team also spoke to the union’s proposals on these matters and to other issues such as medical certificate reimbursement, leave with income averaging and contracting out protections. On the latter issue, PSAC has filed a bad faith bargaining charge with the Federal Public Service Labour Relations Board over the contracting out of certain BSO escort duties at Pearson Airport in Toronto. We will uphold our rights.

We return to the table the week of March 9. We’ll be sure to provide updates as things progress. To review the package of proposals that we tabled and those of the employer, go to: psacunion.ca/fb

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