News

The Union Executive has asked TGHC to provide us with a voice mail extension so that our members may easily contact us with any and all issues that they may have, and we are currently waiting for this to be put in place.

Although we are here to help you and do want everyone to feel comfortable in approaching us with issues, we do ask that you please not approach us in person while we are working our regular duties, as this can be very time consuming and distracts us from our responsibilities to the employer. Rather we would like you to send us an e-mail (and in the future, a voice mail) using our new CUPE e-mail addresses that can be found on our website (www.929.cupe.ca); with much thanks to Alex.

Also, the Executive has recently purchased business cards that highlight our new website and individual e-mails for the Executive members, so please ask us for one so that you can have our contact information easily available.

Matt Kazimierczuk (RPN)

Vice President, CUPE Local 929 & 929-1

I’m happy to report that following our return to collecting dues at 1.5% as per our local by-laws this March, we are now seeing a net surplus in our account each month. This means our monthly expenses are covered and we have further money to save for conferences and education for our members.

Following our return to collecting dues at 1.5%, another problem was discovered after examining our finances. We discovered that the hospital had been reporting our GROSS wages to CUPE National as opposed to our REGULAR wages (only those wages directly earned on worked hours, vacation and sick time) since April 2017. This is the number that CUPE National uses to calculate our fees. Working with the payroll department and a representative at CUPE National, we were able to recalculate our fees for the past year. As a result, nearly $ 6000.00 was returned to our local.

We, your executive, are looking forward to working with you to best decide how to use these funds for our members!

In Solidarity,

Alex McConnell (RPN)

Secretary/Treasurer, CUPE Local 929 & 929-1

Changes are coming to how full time vacation is administered.  Shortly after the elections, a letter of understanding was discovered that dates back to 2010. This signed letter of understanding outlines an agreement between the hospital and the union to move from the current system of vacation accrual to a bank system.

So, what does that mean? Well currently vacation is accrued at a percentage rate per pay and is only available to the employee as it accrues or builds up. The bank system would see a full-time employee’s total amount of vacation be deposited all at once for the year and then the employee can draw from that bank over the year.

This system is widely used and long overdue. Employees will no longer have to wait for vacation hours to build up before taking time off. This letter was tabled at the last Labour Management meeting in June and was well received. Human resources and pay roll would like to begin work this fall with a goal of having the system implemented for 2019.   We will keep you posted on the progress of this implementation that will provide full-time staff with ease for vacation planning which also helps part-time and casual staff plan their lives better. Stay tuned.

In solidarity,

Robert Beveridge RPN

President CUPE local 929/929-1

What is a grievance?

A grievance is a formal complaint about something the employer did or did not do within the workplace. It includes a violation of the collective agreement, federal or provincial labour laws or when there are questions about the application of the collective agreement language by the employer.

Why?

A grievance is a call to action. Filing a grievance is the start of an official process to ensure that an issue is dealt with by the employer in a timely fashion. Filing a grievance carries specific rules and timelines for both parties as specified in the collective agreement (Article 7). The goal of a grievance is not to create tension or negativity within the workplace, but to create a productive dialogue between members and the employer to clarify collective language application, rectify a violation of the collective agreement or to bring attention to a specific issue within the members. It gives members and the employer a route for conflict resolution that structured and fair for both parties.

Types of grievances

Individual grievance:

The union files a grievance on behalf of an individual employee.

Group grievance:

The union files a grievance on behalf of a group of members affected in the same way and at the same time by an action the employer has taken.

Policy/Union grievance:

The union files a grievance because the employer did or did not do something that could have an impact on all workers covered by the collective agreement.

How?

As a member, the first step is to contact your local executive to discuss your concerns. (See Communicating with Your Executive on Page 3). The union has a legal duty to fairly represent all members called the Duty of Fair Representation. The union will investigate your concern and connect with our CUPE representative for guidance. They may also discuss with the employer prior to filing a grievance as part of the investigation process. It is important to note that members who file grievances cannot be reprimanded or retaliated against for speaking up or taking part in union activities.

If warranted the paperwork will be completed and signed and a meeting will be scheduled upon response from the employer. As per the Collective Agreement. During this process your Executive will keep you informed on the process.

If unwarranted, your union can still address your concerns informally with the employer, during local bargaining, labour-management meetings or health and safety committee meetings etc. If this is the case, please speak freely to your union in regards to providing solutions and what your expectations are.

“Workplace violence and harassment is now recognized as a health and safety hazard in the workplace. It is a serious multi-faceted problem that affects not only the intended targets, but colleagues and the workplace as a whole”. ^1. “Many healthcare workers in Ontario face the threat of violence with every shift. Studies have found that nurses, for example, are subjected to more acts of violence that police officers or prison guards.” ^2.

While acknowledging violence and harassment, preventing it is key to protect all staff. A key item at the recent contract negotiations was violence, and as per the Settlement from April 2018, Article 19.04 – ‘Violence’ in the Collective Agreement states that the “Hospital and the union agree that they have a shared goal of a workplace free of violence”.   As per the OHSA it is the employer’s duty to have and maintain violence policies and programs.^3.

TGHC has a policy on Violence in the Workplace (No. 9 – 430) and both the agreement and the policy define workplace violence based on the Occupational Health and Safety Act as:

1. The exercise of physical force by a person against a worker, in a workplace, that causes or could cause physical injury to the worker,
2. An attempt to exercise physical force against a worker, in a workplace, that could cause physical injury to the worker, and

• A statement or behavior that it is reasonable for a worker to interpret as a threat to exercise physical force against the worker, in a workplace, that could cause physical injury to the workers.

Everyone has the right to a safe and healthy work environment. If you feel otherwise, you have a right to be heard and have a fair investigation into your complaint. During the process, it is your right to have union representation at all times and to be free from any form of retaliation as a result on a complaint.^4.

As a member of CUPE it is your duty to report to your manager or On-Call Administrator of any incidents or potential risk s they experienced or witnessed. In serious situations a Code White should be called. As per TGHC policy, HR will appoint an investigator for all reported incidents.

For any concerns please do not hesitate to contact your local Executive.

1. Health and Safety Guidelines, Preventing violence and harassment in the workplace.
2. Brophy, J. T., Keith, MM., Hurley, M. (2017). Violence experienced by healthcare workers in Ontario: an exploration of the reasons for the high incidence and measures that might be taken to curb it. https://www.ochu.on.ca/violence.html#.
3. Occupational Health and Safety Amendment Act (Violence and Harassment in the Workplace), 2009, S.O. 2009, c. 23 – Bill 168. (https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/S09023)
4. https://cupe.ca/new-workplace-violence-and-harassment-prevention-kit-ready

Hello 929 and 929-1 members! Just a quick note on how minutes from meetings work. At each meeting, minutes from the previous meeting must be read and approved by a vote in order to be sent out to all members. This is outlined in our by-laws.

At our meeting on April 18, 2018, we lost quorum prior to our vote on the minutes from the previous meeting. Provided that enough members are present, we will send out minutes from the March and April meetings following our next general membership meeting, scheduled for May 16, 2018.

I would also like to let you know that we are looking for volunteers to be part of a by-law committee. Our by-laws have not been updated since 1997 and are very long overdue for review and amendment. Please contact a member of the executive if you would like to participate.

The previous local agreements for 929 and 929-1 expired in September 2017.  Bargaining of local issues between Local 929 and TGHC is set to begin in April 2018.