July 4, 2008
Three days of bargaining and plenty of discussion but no agreement yet
The SSO RO bargaining team met with the employer for three days of negotiations May 27-29, 2008.
The two teams had in-depth discussions on a number of the union's proposals, but no consensus was reached on anything.
The employer told us that they are committed to a nurturing workplace environment and to a climate of continuous learning, but they do not want to agree to the union's proposed change to Article 1 that would recognize the importance to employees of maintaining a balance between their personal lives, their employment responsibilities and their educational aspirations.
The union's proposal to expand the anti-harassment language in Article 17 to also prohibit personal harassment and abuse of authority was also discussed, as were our proposals on job security and seniority, and on sick leave and personal leave. (The union's proposals can be found on the PSAC web site).
Joint bargaining session in July
We asked the employer to agree to joint bargaining with the Regional Office and Field Interviewer teams for our dozen or so common proposals. The employer has refused our request, but has agreed to one joint session on July 3 during which they will listen to the union's presentations on the Social Justice Fund, the Joint Learning Program, and our proposal to add Gender Identity and Gender Expression, as well as political activity, to our No Discrimination article. The employer will provide us with a presentation on the Pension Plan that same day.
RO representative named to strategy committee
The team elected Rudy Mehra from the Edmonton office to the National Strategy Co-ordinating Committee.
Your Bargaining Team remains committed to achieving an agreement that provides for respect and fairness in the workplace for our members.
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Date Modified : 2008/07/30
Public Service Alliance of Canada | 233, Gilmour Street, Ottawa, ONTARIO CANADA, K2P 0P1, Tel.: 1 888 604-7722 (PSAC)