PRQC Meeting Minutes - April 29, 2024

Present:

Regret:

Thomas Landry - Chair - SP - ATL
Kelly MacKinnon - Member - AFS - ATL

Fatima Hashmi - Member - SUN-RT - ONT

Joanne Bouchard - Member - SH - PRAI/NWT

Mark Korchinski - Member - SP - BC/Yukon
Martin Pilote - Member - SP - QUE

Andrew Wigmore - Member - CP - NCR

Fengqun Yu - Friend - SP - PRAI/NWT

David Yazbeck - Collective bargaining - NCR
Waheed Khan - Board Liaison - SP - NCR

Coralie Leduc - Public Affairs - NCR
Gerry Saunders - Friend - SH - ATL
Nancy Lanctôt - Friend - IT - QUE

Guests:

Ryan Campbell - Research Team Lead

Erica-Martine Jean - Executive Assistant to Director of Collective Bargaining and Compensation Services

Natasha Chhabra - Research Officer

Felipe Godoy - Communications Team Lead

1. Words of Welcome, Round of Introductions, and adoption of the agenda

The chair offers words of welcome, and the committee members and friends re-introduce themselves to previously absent members. 

The PRQC Workplan for 2024 has been added to the Board of Directors’ next meeting agenda. The committee intends to review it during today’s meeting.

Thomas reiterates that the survey is an opportunity to remind our members that PIPSC represents professionals and to instill pride in belonging to PIPSC, the largest union for professionals in Canada.

The draft agenda is adopted through consensus. 

2. Adopting minutes from the previous meeting (Mar 8, 2024)

Minutes for the PRQC Meeting on March 8, 2024,  are approved and to be translated and posted to the committee’s webpage.

3. Update on Regional Reports

There is a roundtable so that, as regional representatives, committee members can update the PRQC on any feedback or concerns their respective regional directors flagged about PRQC activities and any submitted regional reports.

Kelly MacKinnon - Atlantic Region

Sent a report to the Atlantic Regional executive, however, no confirmation of reception or feedback was received. Kelly did get the opportunity to verbally inform the regional executive about some of the PRQC’s goals, challenges, and activities.

Martin Pilote - Québec Region

Sent a report to the Québec regional director, who was very receptive. Martin might have the opportunity to present the PRQC’s activities at the next Québec regional meeting.

Andrew Wigmore - National Capital Region

Since NCR regional director Waheed Khan acts as the PRQC’s board liaison, a formal report was not sent. Andrew can report to the other NCR directors if Waheed is ever absent. 

Fatima Hashmi - Ontario Region

As Fatima’s first PRQC meeting, no report was expected. The regional reports and committee members’ roles were explained. 

Joanne Bouchard - Prairies and NWT Region

Sent a detailed report to the Prairies and NWT regional director. The report was acknowledged, but no feedback or comments were provided. 

Mark Korchinski - BC/Yukon Region

Although a formal report was not sent to regional director Morgan Cranny, Mark did get the opportunity to meet with the latter and provide a brief overview, as well as thank him for his recommendation to be a PRQC candidate. Morgan will flag any relevant issues to Mark to bring them to the PRQC’s attention.

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Thomas emphasizes that the regional report for today’s PRQC meeting will be critical to the member-wide survey the committee intends to distribute in June. Reports should indicate the committee’s interest in discussing professionalism at any opportunity. Obtaining support from Regional Directors is key to facilitating committee-board communications.

4. Reviewing the 2024 Workplan

Preparing for the white paper:

Throughout the survey process, committee members are encouraged to identify various areas of interest and suggest how they can be included in the white paper. Even before survey results come in, articles, surveys, and information relevant to the white paper are welcome. Topics can include professional dues, continuing education, how PIPSC compares with other employers (ex. Recognition, training, and mobility of public sector nurses vs nurses in private or other sectors), etc.
 

Regarding objective #2 from the work plan, Interaction with Stewards and Members, the PRQC would like to have a presentation ready for the next Stewards Council Meeting in the Fall.

Preparing for the strategic bargaining committee:

Last March, Joanne sent David and Thomas a draft communiqué the committee could send to the strategic bargaining committee offering the PRQC’s support should they like to review the language or any articles about professional status and performance in the collective agreements. 

Ultimately, this project is unlikely to proceed if the groups are not interested in updating the language in their collective agreements. However, this initiative might be feasible if various members across the groups express sufficient interest.

Professional development leave code:

The PRQC could consider developing a new leave code for training, professional recognition, and qualifications. This code would allow PIPSC professionals to attend conferences or complete training that is not a specific requirement for their job but nevertheless relevant to their field. Professionals benefit from interdisciplinary approaches, and these opportunities are value-adding training.
 

Although the PC classification in the SP group did gain days for professional activities in the previous round of bargaining, their use has been inconsistent due to the lack of clarity on when and how to request them. Ideally, the survey could capture whether such a leave code would benefit professionals across PIPSC groups and ensure that the existing benefit for the SP GROUP is not lost because of poor communication. 

5. Discussion with Board Liaison

Waheed joins the meeting virtually, and Thomas offers a summary. Waheed will be able to provide more feedback on the work plan following the Board meeting on May 3-4, 2024.

As an advisory committee to the Board, the committee would have to justify working directly with groups. As such, the PRQC should approach the Board with advice for the Institute as a whole, bringing attention to key issues relating to professional recognition and qualifications and providing guidance and evidence when necessary. The survey serves that purpose.

The chair emphasizes the importance of consistent and clear communication between the board and the committee for smooth operations, especially if the committee is to hold an advisory role. The committee would like the board liaison to attend PRQC meetings as much as possible, at least checking in in the morning and the afternoon. 

The current configuration of committee membership, more specifically the one-year membership period, is a significant drawback to the committee's successful functioning and implementation of its projects. 

The committee should consider reviewing its official mandate to better understand its authority and implement projects. The PRQC was created after members’ requests and plays a critical role in the Institute’s ability to advocate for professionals and their work. Increasing the committee’s visibility to members and the board is a top priority. 

Potential topics to explore:

• Professionals being underpaid;
• Loss of professionals due to modified classifications across PIPSC groups;
• Identifying important and urgent issues in professionals’ workplaces;
  • For example, the consequences of gaps in pay structures.

6. Discussing Survey Distribution and Promotion

Team lead for Education and Internal Communications, Felipe Godoy, joins the meeting virtually to discuss the distribution and promotion of the survey with PIPSC members. Ryan Campbell and Natasha Chhabra of the Research Team are also present to help finalize the survey.

The committee discusses the following matters:

• Preparing email content for the survey.
• Determining the email title.
• When emails are to be sent: The week before the National Public Service Week is optimal for first communication.
• Whether the existing communications for NPSW can include a survey reminder.
• Ensuring accessibility of the survey
• The survey will be available to members for 10 days to 2 weeks and will close at the end of the NPSW. 
• Determining who will lead the white paper draft. Ryan cannot commit to writing the white paper at the moment. It will depend on the nature of the survey results.
• Once received and analyzed, the research team will present the survey results. Ryan can be available to discuss the interesting findings and whether the results tell a story. Ultimately, the scale of the response rate will likely influence who leads the white paper.
  • Waheed will send a summary of the white paper to the BoD when appropriate.

7. Roundtable and Closing Remarks

Preparing for the AGM:

• Committee members who would like to attend the PIPSC 2024 AGM as representatives of the PRQC should contact their regional director and express their desire to be nominated as delegates. Ideally, the committee would have 1-2 members present, with Waheed Khan presenting the White Paper. 

• The committee must determine the presence they would like to have at the AGM. Once determined, Wahed must be informed so he can coordinate with the AGM Task Force. 
  • Setting up a PRQC Kiosk to promote survey results and the subsequent White Paper. 
  • Promote professional recognition and qualifications and ensure committee visibility among the membership.

The RTO order and Performance Management:

The reality of representing a large variety of professionals means our members have varying office conditions. As such, the uniform application of a 3-day RTO order for all PIPSC members must be revised. Post-pandemic workplace conditions also present new challenges that need to be considered. The committee could look into how professionals’ workplaces have changed specifically since the pandemic and determine a path forward. 

The committee should determine whether it would like to include an RTO angle when recommending the re-vamping of performance review training to the board. More specifically, (1) review the language used in performance reviews, (2) assess whether being in the office is an explicitly written or often included criterion, and (3) determine how to support members whose performance is negatively impacted by an RTO order. 

National Public Service Week:

Although this year, activities for the National Public Service Week were organized by PISPC member engagement staff, Thomas Landry shares that it was previously one of the committee’s responsibilities. The committee and member engagement staff could discuss how to coordinate activities for the NPSW in the future.

8. Planning the next meeting

Next meeting(s)/Prochaines réunions:

• PRQC/CRPTC
  • The next meeting changed from Jun 7, 2024 to May 27, 2024 Aug 26, 2024 
  • Nov 22, 2024
  • 6th meeting TBD.

• AGM/AGA

• AC/CA & SBC/CSN