EMPLOYER NON-MONETARY PROPOSALS
FOR THE
APPLIED SCIENCE AND PATENT EXAMINATION (SP) GROUP
NEGOTIATIONS FOR THE RENEWAL
OF THE COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT
EXPIRING ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2018
September 13, 2018
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Employer's negotiation objectives for this round of bargaining are to reduce the pay administration burden, provide economic increases that are fair for workers and taxpayers, address departmental operating priorities and support the effective management of the Public Service. Such an approach will contribute to an engaged and qualified workforce that delivers results for Canadians.
The Employer agrees to abide by the principles outlined in the Collective Bargaining Protocol Agreement reached with the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada.
Without prejudice, attached are the Employer proposals for the negotiation of a single collective agreement covering employees who are members of the Applied Science and Patent Examination bargaining unit.
The Employer reserves the right to present other proposals in negotiations as well as counter-proposals with respect to union demands.
The Employer also proposes that articles of the agreement which are not modified, deleted or ultimately dealt with by the parties as proposals shall be renewed with only appropriate editorial modification to ensure compatibility with other articles as finally agreed.
Proposed changes are highlighted in bold font. Where
deletions are proposed, the words have a strikethrough
“
“
.
The Employer reserves the right to table monetary proposals at a later time during the negotiation process.
The Employer proposes to:
Replace all references to the Public Service Labour Relations Board / Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board with references to theFederal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board (FPSLREB).
Replace all references to the Public Service Staff Relations Act / Public Service Labour Relations Act with references to the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act (FPSLRA).
This applies to the following clauses:
ARTICLE 2 – INTERPRETATION AND DEFINITIONS
2.01
“employee”
means a person so defined by the Federal
Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act and who is a member of the bargaining unit (« employé
»)
2.02
Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, expressions used in this Agreement,
a. if defined in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, have the same meaning as given to them in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, and
b. if defined in the Interpretation Act, but not defined in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, have the same meaning as given to them in the
Interpretation Act.
ARTICLE 17 – OTHER LEAVE WITH OR WITHOUT PAY
17.04 Maternity allowance
a. (iii) (C) …. however, an employee whose specified period of employment expired and
who is rehired in any portion of the core public administration as
specified in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act within a period of ninety (90) days or less is not
indebted for the amount if her new period of employment is sufficient to
meet the obligations specified in section (B).
17.07 Parental allowance
a. (iii) (C) ….however, an employee whose specified period of employment expired and
who is rehired in any portion of the Core Public Administration as
specified in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act within a period of ninety (90) days or less is not
indebted for the amount if his or her new period of employment is
sufficient to meet the obligations specified in section (B).
17.14 Personnel selection leave with pay
Where an employee participates in a personnel selection process, including
the appeal process where applicable, for a position in the public service,
as defined in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, the employee is entitled to leave with pay for the
period during which the employee’s presence is required for purposes of the
selection process, and for such further period as the Employer considers
reasonable for the employee to travel to and from the place where the
employee’s presence is so required. This clause applies equally in respect
of the personnel selection processes related to deployment.
ARTICLE 26 - RECOGNITION
26.01
The Employer recognizes the Institute as the exclusive bargaining agent for
all employees described in the certificate issued by the former Public Service Labour Relations
and Employment
Board on August 26, 2006 covering all employees in the Applied Science and
Patent Examination Group as defined in Part I of the Canada Gazette of
August 13, 2005.
26.02
The Employer recognizes that it is a proper function and a right of the
Institute to bargain with a view to arriving at a collective agreement and
the Employer and the Institute agree to bargain in good faith, in
accordance with the provisions of the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act.
ARTICLE 27 – CHECK-OFF
27.05
No employee organization, as defined in section 2 of the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, other than the Institute, shall be permitted to have
membership dues and/or other monies deducted by the Employer from the pay
of employees in the bargaining unit.
ARTICLE 31 - LEAVE FOR STAFF RELATIONS MATTERS
31.01
Federal
Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations and Employment Board Hearings
Complaints made to the
Federal
Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations and Employment Board pursuant to the former Section 23
of the Public Service Staff Relations Act
Where operational requirements permit the Employer will grant leave with pay:
31.03 Employee called as a witness
The Employer will grant leave with pay:
a. to an employee called as a witness by the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations and Employment Board,
ARTICLE 33 - ILLEGAL STRIKES
33.01
The Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act provides penalties for engaging in illegal strikes.
Disciplinary action may also be taken, which will include penalties up to
and including termination of employment, for participation in an illegal
strike as defined in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act.
ARTICLE 35 – GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
35.02 Individual grievances
Subject to and as provided in section 208 of the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, an employee may present an individual grievance to
the Employer if he or she feels aggrieved:
35.03 Group grievances
Subject to and as provided in section 215 of the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act,…
35.04 Policy grievances
Subject to and as provided in section 220 of the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, …
35.08
Subject to and as provided for in the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act, …
35.16
Where a grievance has been presented up to and including the final step in
the grievance process, and the grievance is not one that may be referred to
adjudication, the decision on the grievance taken at the final step in the
grievance process is final and binding and no further action may be taken
under the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act.
35.24
... and the grievance has not been resolved, it may be referred to
adjudication in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act and Regulations.
35.26 Expedited adjudication
The parties agree that any adjudicable grievance may be referred to the following expedited adjudication process:
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada and the Treasury
Board of Canada Secretariat agree to establish a process of expedited
adjudication, which may be reviewed at any time by the parties and the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations and Employment Board (FPSLREB). The
framework is set out below.
c. When the parties agree that a particular grievance will proceed through
expedited adjudication, the Institute will submit to the
PSLRB
FPSLREB
the consent form signed by the grievor or the bargaining agent.
d. The parties may proceed with or without an agreed statement of facts.
When the parties arrive at an agreed statement of facts it will be
submitted to the
PSLRB
FPSLREB
or to the adjudicator at least forty-eight (48) hours prior to the start of
the hearing.
f. The adjudicator will be appointed by the
PSLRB
FPSLREB
from among any of the members of the chairperson group, or any of its
members who have had at least two (2) years experience as a member of the
Board.
g. Each expedited adjudication session will take place in Ottawa unless the
parties and the
PSLRB
FPSLREB
agree otherwise. The cases will be scheduled jointly by the parties and the
PSLRB
FPSLREB
, and will appear on the
PSLRB
FPSLREB
hearing schedule.
ARTICLE 36 – NATIONAL JOINT COUNCIL AGREEMENTS
36.01
Agreements concluded by the National Joint Council (NJC) of the Public
Service on items which may be included in a collective agreement, and which
the parties to this Agreement have endorsed after December 6, 1978, and as
amended from time to time, will form part of this collective agreement,
subject to the Federal Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act (
PSLRA
FPSLRA
) and any legislation by Parliament that has been or may be, as the case
may be, established pursuant to any Act specified in section 113 of the
PSLRA
FPSLRA
.
36.02
The NJC items which may be included in a collective agreement are those
items which parties to the NJC Agreements have designated as such or upon
which the Chairperson of the Federal
Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations and Employment Board has made a ruling pursuant to (c) of
the NJC Memorandum of Understanding which became effective December 6,
1978, and as amended from time to time.
ARTICLE 40 - PART-TIME EMPLOYEES
Definition
40.01
Part-time employee means a person whose normal scheduled hours of work are
less than thirty-seven decimal five (37.5) hours per week, but not less
than those prescribed in the Federal
Public
Service
Sector
Labour Relations Act.
Replace all references to “cash” with references to “payment”.
This applies to the following clauses:
APPENDIX “H” – Archived provisions for the elimination of severance pay for voluntary separations (resignation and retirement)
19.02
The period of continuous employment used in the calculation of severance
benefits payable to an employee under this article shall be reduced by any
period of continuous employment in respect of which the employee was
already granted severance pay, retiring leave or a
cash
gratuity payment in lieu of retiring
leave. Under no circumstances shall the maximum severance pay provided
under this article be pyramided.
Pay Simplification
The Employer wishes to discuss options to standardize and simplify certain terms and conditions of employment to lessen the burden on pay administration, where the associated cost is reasonable and recoding/impact on pay system is minimal.
Various Articles
HOURS OF WORK
Monthly attendance registers
8.05
Employees will submit monthly attendance registers; only those hours of
overtime and absences need be specified.
HOURS OF WORK
(a) If an employee is given less than
one hundred twenty (120)
forty-eight (48)
hours’ advance notice of a change in the employee’s shift schedule, the
employee will receive compensation at the rate of time and one half (1 1/2)
for work performed on the first shift changed. Subsequent shifts worked on
the changed schedule shall be paid for at straight time and every effort
shall be made by the Employer to ensure that scheduled days of rest on the
changed schedule are maintained.
HOURS OF WORK
8.18
Employees will submit monthly attendance records; only absences and
hours of overtime need be specified.
CALL-BACK
(New)
10.02 An employee who receives a call to duty or responds to a telephone or data line call while on standby or at any other time outside his or her scheduled hours of work, may at the discretion of the Employer work at the employee’s residence or at another place to which the Employer agrees. In such instances, the employee shall be paid the greater of:
a. compensation at the applicable overtime rate for any time worked,
or
b. compensation equivalent to one (1) hour’s pay at the straight-time rate, which shall apply only the first time an employee performs work during an eight (8) hour period, starting when the employee first commences the work.
Renumber accordingly.
DESIGNATED PAID HOLIDAYS
12.01 Subject to clause 12.02, the following days shall be designated paid holidays for employees:
For greater certainty, employees who do not work on a Designated Paid Holiday are entitled to seven decimal five (7.5) hours’ pay at the straight-time rate.
TRAVELLING TIME
13.01
(New)
VACATION LEAVE
Entitlement to Vacation Leave With Pay
15.04
An employee is entitled to vacation leave with pay to the extent of earned
credits but an employee who has completed six (6) months of continuous service
employment
may receive an advance of credits equivalent to the anticipated credits for
the current vacation year.
VACATION LEAVE
Provision for vacation leave
15.05
a. Employees are expected to take all their vacation leave during the vacation year in which it is earned.
b. In order to maintain operational requirements, the Employer reserves the right to schedule an employee’s vacation leave but shall make every reasonable effort:
a.
i.
to provide an employee’s vacation leave in an amount and at such time as
the employee may request;
b.
ii.
not to recall an employee to duty after the employee has proceeded on
vacation leave.
VACATION LEAVE
15.19
Effective on July 9, 2009, employees with more than two (2) years of
service, as defined in clause 15.03, shall be credited a one-time
entitlement of thirty-seven decimal five (37.5) hours of vacation leave
with pay.
c.
b.
The vacation leave credits provided in paragraph 15.19(a)
and (b)
above shall be excluded from the application of clause 15.08 dealing with
the Carry-over of Vacation Leave.
OTHER LEAVE WITH OR WITHOUT PAY
17.09 Leave Without Pay for the Care of Immediate Family
OTHER LEAVE WITH OR WITHOUT PAY
17.09 Leave Without Pay for the Care of Immediate Family
Transitional Provision
h.
This transitional provision is applicable to employees who have been
granted and have proceeded on leave on or after the date of signature
of this Agreement.
OTHER LEAVE WITH OR WITHOUT PAY
**
In any fiscal year, an employee is entitled to no more than fifteen
(15) hours of combined personal and volunteer leave.
**
Effective April 1, 2017, clause 17.17, Volunteer leave, is deleted
from the collective agreement.
17.17 Volunteer leave
a.
Subject to operational requirements as determined by the Employer and
with an advance notice of at least five (5) working days, the employee
shall be granted, in each fiscal year, a single period of up to seven
decimal five (7.5) hours of leave with pay to work as a volunteer for a
charitable or community organisation or activity, other than for
activities related to the Government of Canada Workplace Charitable
Campaign.
b.
The leave will be scheduled at a time convenient to both the employee
and the Employer. Nevertheless, the Employer shall make every
reasonable effort to grant the leave at such time as the employee may
request.
OTHER LEAVE WITH OR WITHOUT PAY
17.20 Other leave with pay
In any fiscal year, an employee is entitled to no more than fifteen
(15) hours of combined personal and volunteer leave.
a. At its discretion, the Employer may grant leave with pay for purposes other than those specified in this Agreement, including military or civil defence training, emergencies affecting the community or place of work, and when circumstances not directly attributable to the employee prevent the employee reporting for duty.
b.
Personal leave
i.
Subject to operational requirements as determined by the Employer and
with an advance notice of at least five (5) working days, the employee
shall be granted, in each fiscal year, a single period of up to seven
decimal five (7.5) hours of leave with pay for reasons of a personal
nature.
ii.
The leave will be scheduled at a time convenient to both the employee
and the Employer. Nevertheless, the Employer shall make every
reasonable effort to grant the leave at such time as the employee may
request.
**
Effective April 1, 2017, clause 17.17, Volunteer leave, is deleted
from the collective agreement and clause 17.20 b) is amended to
reflect the following:
b. Personal leave
i. Subject to operational requirements as determined by the Employer and with an advance notice of at least five (5) working days, the employee shall be granted, in each fiscal year, fifteen (15) hours of leave with pay for reasons of a personal nature. This leave can be taken in periods of seven decimal five (7.5) hours or three decimal seven five (3.75) hours each.
ii. The leave will be scheduled at a time convenient to both the employee and the Employer. Nevertheless, the Employer shall make every reasonable effort to grant the leave at such time as the employee may request.
OTHER LEAVE WITH OR WITHOUT PAY
17.21 Other leave without pay
The Employer will propose a change in the French version of this clause to align with the English version in the collective agreement.
SEVERANCE PAY
19.03
The weekly rate of pay referred to in the above clauses shall be the weekly
rate of pay to which the employee is entitled for the classification prescribed in his or her certificate of appointment
of the employee’s substantive position
on the date of the termination of employment.
duration
48.01
The duration of this collective agreement shall be from the date it is
signed to September 30,
2022
2018
.
Rates of Pay
CH
1.
For employees that transferred from CRA to CBSA whose CRA rates of pay
were maintained, the new rate of pay effective October 1, 2014 shall be
the step in the TB salary scale for the applicable group and level,
which is closest to but not less than the CRA rate the employee was
receiving on date of transfer and the employee will receive a lump sum
equal to the difference between the value of the economic increase and
the actual increase in salary.
2.
Should there be no such rate, the employee’s CRA rate of pay shall be
maintained until such time as the CRA rate can be integrated into the
TB salary scale.
3.
Effective October 1, 2014, where the CRA rate of pay cannot be
integrated into the revised TB salary scale as per (b) above, the
employee shall receive a lump sum equal to one decimal two five per
cent (1.25%) of the employee’s salary and the CRA rate shall be
maintained.
4.
Effective October 1, 2015, for employees subject to (b) above, the
employee’s new rate of pay shall be the rate in the TB salary scale
which is closest to but not less than the maintained CRA rate the
employee was receiving, and the employee will receive a lump sum equal
to the difference between the value of the economic increase and the
actual increase in salary.
5.
Effective October 1, 2015, where the CRA rate of pay cannot be
integrated into the revised TB salary scale as per (d) above, the
employee shall receive a lump sum equal one decimal two five per cent
(1.25%) of the employee’s salary and the CRA rate shall be maintained.
6.
Effective October 1, 2016, for employees subject to (b) above, the
employee’s new rate of pay shall be the rate in the TB salary scale
which is closest to but not less than the maintained CRA rate the
employee was receiving, and the employee will receive a lump sum equal
to the difference between the value of the economic increase and the
actual increase in salary.
7.
Effective October 1, 2016, where the CRA rate of pay cannot be
integrated into the revised TB salary scale as per (d) above, the
employee shall receive a lump sum equal one decimal two five per cent
(1.25%) of the employee’s salary and the CRA rate shall be maintained.
8.
Effective October 1, 2017, where the CRA rate of pay cannot be
integrated into the revised TB salary scale as per (d) above, the
employee shall receive a lump sum equal one decimal two five per cent
(1.25%) of the employee’s salary and the CRA rate shall be maintained.
MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TREASURY BOARD AND THE PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTE OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE OF CANADA (HEREINAFTER CALLED THE INSTITUTE) IN RESPECT TO SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY
The Employer wishes to discuss Scientific Integrity.
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE TREASURY BOARD (HEREINAFTER CALLED THE EMPLOYER) AND THE PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTE OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE OF CANADA (HEREINAFTER CALLED THE INSTITUTE) IN RESPECT OF AN ALLOWANCE FOR CERTAIN HEALTH CANADA EMPLOYEES IN THE BIOLOGICAL SCIENCE GROUP OF THE APPLIED SCIENCE AND PATENT EXAMINATION (SP) BARGAINING UNIT
The Employer wishes to discuss the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with respect to the terminable allowance received by certain BI-04 and BI-05 employees at Health Canada.
The Employer proposes to discuss the following articles at the common table:
The Employer also wishes to discuss the below items. These items will be presented at the SP table by the Employer in the optics of bringing those discussions to the common table once detailed language is tabled.
After the parties’ discussion, any of the items listed above may be redirected to the SP table or the common table for negotiations.