Tag Archives: négos

Three Years Without a Contract: FB Group to Take Message to Cabinet This Summer

As of today, it’s been three years since our contract expired.

We have taken the government to court. We have taken the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) before the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board (PSLREB). Union members have picketed their workplaces – from Sarnia to Dorval Airport in Montreal, to PIA in Toronto, to downtown Vancouver. We have filed for a Public Interest Commission (PIC). Now is the time for us to take our message to MPs.

PSAC and CIU are organizing to take our message about the need for parity with other law enforcement agencies to cabinet ministers and other MPs this summer. Lobbying teams are being organized across the country. Other activities in support of our efforts to achieve a fair contract are also being organized.

CIU National President Jean-Pierre Fortin and PSAC National President Robyn Benson have met with the Minister of Public Safety and the President of Treasury Board. Now it’s time that MPs hear directly from union members in their constituencies about the challenges they face day in and day out as law enforcement personnel.

PSAC and CIU are also working together to further promote the work that we do to keep Canadians safe. These initiatives will also roll out over the course of the summer.

PIC dates have been confirmed

Our FB bargaining team broke off talks earlier this year after having made no progress in negotiations on our key priorities. Meanwhile, CBSA and Treasury Board continued to push for concessions.

Our Team proceeded to the next step in the process provided for under the law – filing for a Public Interest Commission (PIC). Get more information on the PIC process here. The PIC has now been established and the dates for our hearing are confirmed for October 17 & 18, and November 2, 6 & 23, 2017.

We will keep you update as things progress. Stay informed: Sign up for bargaining updates. Please contact your CIU Branch President with any questions.

Download the PDF of a previous version of this update (bilingual document).
A version of this article was also published on the PSAC website.

FB Bargaining: PSAC and CIU Oppose CBSA’s Part-Timer Initiative

Recently, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has announced a planned change to its part-time policy. CIU has made clear that it is opposed to such changes, and PSAC has indicated at the bargaining table that our position is to improve job and income security for PSAC/CIU members at CBSA. An increase in part-time employment runs contrary to this objective.

Despite this, CBSA has indicated that it will proceed with the implementation of its plan and increase part-time employment at CBSA.

In negotiations, our PSAC-CIU Bargaining Team for the FB group has made proposals to Treasury Board and CBSA concerning shift work, scheduling and part-time work.

The law says that all matters subject to negotiation are frozen until such time as the parties reach a new agreement, are in a legal strike position, or until an arbitration award is issued. This means that our current terms and conditions are frozen. The same rules also apply with respect to changes that could have a direct impact on matters under negotiation or potentially subject to negotiation.

CBSA cannot make unilateral changes without negotiation

PSAC legal counsel has contacted Treasury Board to request that the CBSA and TB cease from implementing these changes. Should the employer proceed, we will file an unfair labour practice complaint with the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board.

CBSA management cannot do whatever it wants. We will uphold our rights. We will be sure to update as things progress. Please contact your CIU Branch President with any questions.

Download the PDF version of this update (bilingual document).

A version of this article was also published on the PSAC website.

What’s Going On With FB Bargaining?

Our PSAC/CIU bargaining team for the FB group broke off talks in February after spending three days in mediation with the employer and making no progress on our key priorities. Also CBSA continued to push concessions.

Consequently, our Team proceeded to the next step in the process provided for under the law – filing for a Public Interest Commission (PIC). Get more information on the PIC process here.

Once the PSAC filed for a PIC with the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board (PSLREB), the Treasury Board responded by indicating that a PIC was premature and that more mediation was required.

Our response was clear: after over two years of talks – including a week and a half session in December and three full days of mediation in February – the parties were indeed at impasse and that it is time to move to the next stage in the process. What’s more, the Treasury Board and CBSA provided no indication that the employer is prepared to address the issues that our Team raised in bargaining with respect to compensation, pension and hours of work (among others matters). Our position was that there should be no further delay.

Next step is being set in motion

The PSLREB contacted the union on April 5, 2017 to notify us that the PIC is going forward, and that the next step in setting up a PIC is being set in motion (the appointment of the parties’ nominees). We are now awaiting news from the PSLREB concerning the next step in the process – the naming of the Chair of the PIC.

Unfortunately, there are no timelines prescribed in the legislation in terms of getting the PIC set up and for the selection of a date for the hearing. It is up to the PSLREB.

In the meantime, CIU leadership is consulting with Branch Presidents across the country, along with representatives from our bargaining team, to discuss next steps beyond filing for a PIC – including potential mobilization activities to get the Treasury Board and CBSA to finally address our issues concerning parity with other law enforcement agencies. For more information, speak with your CIU Branch President.

Our union and our bargaining team remain committed to achieving a fair contract for CIU/PSAC members in the FB bargaining unit. We’ll be sure to provide updates as things progress.

Download the PDF version of this update (bilingual document).

PSAC Members Ratify New Agreements (PA, TC, EB and SV)

Members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada working for Treasury Board have accepted new collective agreements that contain no concessions for four bargaining units representing more than 100,000 workers.

The majority of members in the Program and Administrative (PA), Technical Services (TC), Operational Services (SV), and Education and Library Science (EB) bargaining units voted in favour of the new agreements.

“I am proud of our negotiating teams for standing strong during these two long, difficult years at the table,” said Robyn Benson, PSAC National President. “It is through the hard work and commitment of the members of our bargaining teams, along with the support and solidarity from the bargaining unit members, that we were able to reach these agreements.”

Significant Breakthroughs

With these agreements, PSAC achieved some significant breakthroughs:

Sick leave: The sick leave articles of our collective agreements will remain unchanged. The parties have negotiated a Memorandum of Agreement to establish a Task Force to develop recommendations on measures to improve employee wellness.
Workforce adjustment: the most significant improvements to the Workforce Adjustment agreement since it was first signed as an appendix into PSAC collective agreements in 1998.
Helping workers meet family demands: It has been agreed that a committee will be established to look at childcare needs. Better family leave, including provisions for extended family, have also been negotiated.
Mental health task force: the memorandum that established the task force is also contained in this agreement. The MOU was agreed to earlier in the bargaining process, in 2015, and the task force has already been hard at work ever since

Monetary Gains

The four-year collective agreements, which expire in 2018, provide for across-the-board annual wage increases of 1.25 per cent for each year, plus other wage adjustments made for specific bargaining units and classifications.

FB Group

The Border Services (FB) group was unable to conclude a tentative agreement and is proceeding to a Public Interest Commission.

More Information

For more information on the agreements:

What’s Next

FAQ on collective agreement implementation and retroactivity

Bargaining Has Reached An Impasse: PSAC Files for a Public Interest Commission

The PSAC/CIU Bargaining Team for the FB group spent three days in mediation with Treasury Board and CBSA during the week of January 30. Given the refusal of Treasury Board and CBSA to address FB group priorities, the Bargaining Team has declared impasse.

As part of our ongoing campaign for respect for the border services group, PSAC filed for a Public Interest Commission (PIC) for the Border Services group on February 8, 2017. The group’s critical public safety duties deserve the same recognition given to other law enforcement officers.

Next Step

Under federal law, the PIC is the next step in the collective bargaining process when the parties reach impasse. Over the coming weeks CIU and PSAC will be consulting with branches across the country to prepare next steps in our efforts to get Treasury Board and the CBSA to finally address the issues our FB bargaining team have raised in negotiations.

We’ll be sure to provide updates as things progress. Please see the page What If Talks Break Down for more information on the PIC. For more information on FB bargaining, speak with your CIU Branch President, or sign-up for PSAC email updates.

Parts of this article were originally published on the PSAC website.