Dear AFS London Subgroup Members,
AFS has recently announced that they are encouraging all members to file individual grievances against the RTO mandate. Grievances are a way to show management how upset we are with their decision to mandate us back to the office. While the union can tell management that members are not happy, management will simply not believe there's discontent unless they actually see it via grievances.
We would like to provide more information on the three types of grievances that we are encouraging, depending on your specific circumstances.
1. Pressure tactic to show displeasure with the RTO3 announcement
We have been provided standard wording for these grievances that basically states that you are grieving the Employer's termination or modification of your current Work Arrangement Agreement as it is unfair, unreasonable, arbitrary, and inconsistent with the principles for flexible working arrangements. You would be asking to maintain your current Work Arrangement Agreement of 2 days/week.
Grievance process:
- Grievance wording will be provided to you. The grievance would be filed via email to your direct supervisor.
- Grievances are presented to management during a grievance hearing (over MS Teams these days). A steward would be assigned to your grievance and would attend the grievance hearings with you.
- There are four levels of grievance hearings. For most employees who work in the Ontario Region, the first level is with your manager and 2nd level is with your director. AFS is encouraging all grievances to be presented to at least the first two levels. The third level is the AC of Ontario Region, and fourth level is the head of HR at CRA.
- At each hearing, the steward would present information on why we don't agree with CRA's decision to go to 3 days/week. You would also be encouraged to provide information at the hearing on how this decision has affected you personally.
2. Request a new virtual work arrangement and grieve the inevitable denial
For those members who would prefer to request a work arrangement that works better for them - be it 100% telework or anything else that you would prefer - this is a good option. The new Letter of Agreement (LOA) between CRA and AFS that was entered into at the same time as our latest Collective Agreement states that employee requests for virtual work arrangements will be considered on a case-by-case basis. If a request is denied, the employee will be provided with the reasons in writing for the denial. The LOA provides for the creation of a panel (made up of CRA and AFS delegates) to address the employee's dissatisfaction with a decision.
Steps to take:
- You would request a new work arrangement from your team leader/manager.
- If/when it's denied, you would file a grievance of the denial. A steward would assist in the wording of that grievance.
- The same grievance process noted in option #1 would follow for the first two levels.
- The LOA, however, states that if no settlement has been reached prior to the final step of the grievance process, the employee may refer the grievance to the panel, at which point the grievance will be held in abeyance pending the completion of the review by the panel.
This option allows union representatives (as part of the panel) to try to come to a resolution on your virtual work arrangement request. There's no guarantee that your request will be granted but it is an added process that's never been available before the LOA.
3. Accommodation denials
If you have been denied an accommodation request, please let us know. While you would still file a grievance to the denial, there are also potential discrimination claims that we would be making at the same time.
4. Other circumstances
Even if you don't mind working 3+ days in the office. There are many concerns with the process used by management in implementing the RTO mandate - from the denials that a new mandate would be implement, the lack of honesty in the reasons given, to the lack of communication with our unions.
If you agree and want to have a venue to state your dissatisfaction, we will provide wording for grievances that suit your circumstances.
The grievance process will follow option 1.
5. Exemption denials
If you don't fall under the categories required to request accommodation but you have unique circumstances that don't allow you to work from the office 60% of the time, contact us to determine whether a request for an exemption could be filed.
As you can see, while we encourage everyone to file a grievance, the reasons for your grievance will depend on your circumstances. The first thing to do is respond to this email (to p_andres@pipsc.ca and c.c. mhung@pipsc.ca) to let us know that you are willing to file a grievance and what option you think would best suit your needs. At that time, we will assign a steward to your case and they will be in contact to discuss further.
We can't stress enough how important it is for all of us to stand together and let management know how strongly we disagree with their arbitrary decisions to force us back to the office. We ask that you join us in this grievance campaign.
In Solidarity,
Paul Andres
President
London AFS Subgroup