I hope most of you have managed to enjoy your summer and take some well-deserved time away from the office or are planning to in the next few weeks. As always if there’s information you want shared with the membership at large or want to see something specific covered don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly (nczicro@gmail.com).
Download the pdf version.
Recent Executive Updates
At the end of July, the NR Group Executive had another meeting. One of the main topics discussed included bargaining and how that will unfold. Keep your eyes open for an upcoming newsletter from your bargaining team. Additional updates were shared around bylaw resolutions proposed for the AGMs and updates on finance and elections.
PIPSC Structure 101
I know it’s summer and school is supposed to be out, but we’re going to have a short summer school session to quickly go through an overview of the structure of our union. Myself and other executives have had the occasion to hear from some of our newer members and through doing so realize how confusing the union structure can be when initially exposed to it. A union is like an onion…meaning multiple layers, not that it makes you cry! The objective of the multi-layered structure is to ensure that even though the PISPC union is large (80,000+ members) the layered structure ensures that both regional diversity and professional diversity is maintained. It allows these sub-layers to have their own forum to discuss and develop ideas and policy that may be more specific to a sub-layer than the entire union. The diagram below provides a rough outline of the breakdown.
You’re receiving this newsletter because you’re part of the NR Group. A group shares a collective bargaining agreement and usually represents one or a few job classifications. In our case this is ENGineers, SURveyors, and ARchitects. I’ll leave any additional reading up to you (https://pipsc.ca/for-members/membership/) as well as remind you that you can see all the specific groups and regions that apply to you by logging into the PIPSC website and viewing your profile.
Each tab is a link that can be clicked on to see who the executive or members of a particular body are. I encourage you all to log in and reach out to your branch or sub-group and ensure you’re on their mailing list. This is the best way to stay connected to your fellow local union members and activities.
Back in the Office
One month in, how are we all feeling? One would think that management would be better prepared to implement a decision they themselves had decided to take and had plenty of notice before putting into action, but yet again it seems that whoever is making these decisions isn’t doing a great job of ensuring they can be implemented… I almost think management adjusted better to the pandemic than to RTO as crazy as that may seem. I for one can’t remember multiple hour-long meetings involving hundreds of people discussing how we were going to manage VPN access or shipping a second monitor to people’s homes, but I’ve been privy to multiple meetings now where people are planning on the fly how we’re going to fit 1,000 people in a building originally designed for 600. I’m sure in whatever productivity or collaboration metrics that are being collected they’ll be closely tracking the significant amount of time being wasted on all this and not doing their actual job.
But I’m sure it’s fine what’s a few billion dollars more to the deficit to pay for something that nobody seems to want…
And hey, those kids probably weren’t using those soccer fields anyways
Group Executive Elections
Reminder for all members residing within the Atlantic, Québec or National Capital Region that an election is currently underway and I encourage you to take a few minutes to exercise your democratic voice. You can vote by logging into your account at https://elections.pipsc-ipfpc.ca/. Voting closes August 14th.
NR and PIPSC AGM Notices
Thanks to all members who put forth their name to be delegates at the NR AGM and PIPSC AGM. You should have either received an acknowledgement or received one shortly if you were selected to attend. When the lists are finalized, I’ll be sure to include them in next month’s newsletter. In any case, I encourage all interested members to look at the AGM binders when they’re made available where they can see the submitted bylaw resolutions. If you feel strongly about a resolution, you can reach out to your fellow members that were selected as delegates and share your perspective. Additionally, any member can always attend either AGM as a virtual observer to follow along and observe how policy is discussed and decided within the union.
New Stewards
Since our previous newsletter, we’ve had a couple new members decide to undertake the responsibility of becoming stewards within our union.
- Oi Kei Ng
Stewards play an important role in the functioning of the union. Their role is multifaceted and supports many of the union’s activities. They are the first contact with the union for members and, in large part, that first interaction shapes member’s opinion of the union. If ever you’re interested in becoming more involved in your union, becoming a steward is one of the best places to start. Becoming a Steward
Meet Your Bargaining Team
This month’s feature has us hearing from John Britto Daniel Paulraj. John works with DND in Victoria, BC.
What made you want to join the bargaining team?
I wanted to join the bargaining team because I believe collective bargaining is one of the most important ways to address the workplace issues affecting NR members. Through my work as a steward, sub-group president, and consultation committee participant, I have heard many concerns from members about contracting out, regional compensation inequities, allowances, succession planning, and professional recognition. Joining the bargaining team gives me an opportunity to bring these concerns forward at the national level and contribute directly to improving working conditions for NR members.
What unique insight or skill do you hope to bring to the table?
I bring a strong regional and operational perspective, particularly from the West Coast and the National Defence Fleet Maintenance Facility environment. As a senior engineer/supervisor, PIPSC steward, and NR Vancouver Island Sub-group President, I understand both the technical nature of our members’ work and the labour relations challenges they face. I also bring experience in consultation, member engagement, collaboration with other sub-groups, and advocacy on regional issues such as ENG-04 compensation, contracting out, and allowances. My goal is to bring a practical, balanced, and member-focused voice to the bargaining table.
How best do you think the membership can support bargaining?
Membership support is essential to successful bargaining. Members can help by staying informed, participating in surveys and meetings, sharing workplace examples, and communicating their priorities clearly to stewards, subgroup executives, and bargaining team members. Strong participation gives the bargaining team a clearer mandate and stronger evidence to support proposals. Members can also support bargaining by remaining united, engaged, and ready to show solidarity when needed. The stronger and more connected the membership is, the stronger the bargaining team will be.,
Signing Off
I’ll close out this one just by saying that I appreciate all of you who take the time to read through these newsletters and I hope to provide a more interactive method to discuss and communicate on the content within them in the upcoming months. I have a couple ideas floating around in my head of mid-2000s message boards or maybe a Slack/Discord/Mattermost or maybe just a simple static webpage with a comment box. We’ll see, if you have any preference do let me know.
In Solidarity,
Nathaniel Cziranka-Crooks
