On November 8, 2019 PIPSC Vice-President Norma Domey led a two-hour “standing room only” seminar on "Leading with Emotional Intelligence" at the Institute’s 100^th Annual General Meeting in Gatineau, Québec.  

Over 50 PIPSC members attended the event, which featured ways to use Emotional Intelligence (EQ) for self-improvement, creating high performing teams, and developing truly visionary leadership.  Its goals were:

• To understand emotional Intelligence, and learn how to increase your current EQ.
• To practice easy to use tools to increase your emotional intelligence and leadership skills.
• To better perceive, use, understand and manage emotions.

The seminar concluded with a debrief of new Women in Science projects being initiated in a number of PIPSC workplaces and a debrief on the Women’s Learning Lab held earlier this Fall in Ottawa.  For more information about the Lab, click here.

The Lab is part of the Institute’s broader effort to influence change for women in science by: 

• Conducting advocacy and activism campaigns aimed at new or better workplace legislation;
• Collective bargaining for new and better workplace rights;
• Supporting consultation presidents at union-management consultation for new and improved human resources policies; and
• Developing and conducting awareness and education campaigns for our members.

PIPSC will continue to press for progress on these issues, which are of critical importance for thousands of current and future federal scientists.

New collective agreements include parental leave allowance gains and additional shared weeks available under EI and QPIP.

This training outlines key changes to the parental leave policy, eligibility requirements, and strategies for accessing it.

The new parental allowance provisions currently apply to the AV, NR, RE, SH, SP, AFS (CRA), NEB, NFB, NRC (IS, LS, RO-RCO, TR), NUREG (CNSC) and OSFI collective agreements.

Watch the training video or download the presentation. 
 

The new parental allowance provisions are currently applicable to the AV, NR, RE, SH, SP, CNRC (LS, IR, RO-RCO, TR), CRA (AFS), OSFI, CNSC (NUREG), NEB and NFB collective agreements.

On November 18, 2019, the new extended parental leave allowance and the additional shared weeks available under Employment Insurance and QPIP will be implemented. If an employee starts parental leave on or after November 18, 2019 the new language will apply, if the leave starts before November 18, 2019 the old language will apply to the entire allowance. 

Please download and review the following flow charts to help calculate the allowance you're entitled to under the new extended parental leave allowance.

EI Physical Birth
QPIP Physical Birth
EI Adoption
QPIP Adoption

Other common questions and parental allowance scenarios are covered in our Frequently Asked Questions.

If you still require clarifications contact your steward.

Human Rights Day is celebrated around the world to commemorate the proclamation of “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights” (UDHR) by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on December 10, 1948.

The UDHR is a milestone in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, it sets out a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations.

For the first time it recognized that fundamental human rights – regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status – must be universally protected.

Women shaped the Declaration

Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady for the United States, served as the first Chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights and played an instrumental role in drafting the UDHR. Many other women also played an important role and these include Begum Shaista Ikramullah (Pakistan), Bodil Begtrup (Denmark), Evdokia Uralova (Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic), Marie-Hélène Lefaucheux (France), Minerva Bernardino (Dominican Republic), and Hansa Mehta and Lakshmi Menon (India).

Youth stand up for human rights

This year, we are called to "Stand Up for Human Rights" and to celebrate the potential of youth as agents of change, amplify their voices and engage a broad range of global audiences in the promotion and protection of rights. This year's campaign is designed to encourage, galvanize and showcase how youth all over the world stand up for rights and against racism, hate speech, bullying, discrimination, and climate change.

Your Human Rights & Diversity Committee

PIPSC is actively involved in protecting and promoting the human rights of its members and has established a Human Rights & Diversity Committee, to advise the Board of Directors on human rights, employment equity as well as diversity and inclusion. Learn more about their work in the Human Rights & Diversity Committee Report.

"The UDHR empowers us all. The principles remain as relevant or more today. We must stand up for our own rights and those of others every day. I encourage you to champion human rights in our workplace." encouraged Waheed Khan, PIPSC Chair of the Human Rights and Diversity Committee.

Read the PIPSC Pocket Guide on Human Rights and be a champion of human rights in your workplace. Take part online using #HumanRights and #StandUp4HumanRights on social media.

OTTAWA, December 5, 2019  – Debi Daviau, President of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC) presented the 2019 Institute’s Gold Medal to Dr. Xiaolan Wang to recognize her contributions to the understanding of climate change in Canada and internationally. Dr. Wang is a Senior Research Scientist at Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Dr. Wang’s research seeks to understand the past, current and future behaviour of regional and global climate. Now used by scientists in more than 50 countries, her statistical methods and user-friendly software have changed the way scientists assess climate trends.

“Dr. Wang is an example of the role model that the Institute’s Gold Medal is intended to honour. She is a visionary in the field of climate change research and is held in very high regard in Canada and internationally,” commented President Daviau.

“The tremendous contribution that dedicated professionals like Dr. Wang make to the public good confirms that the federal government has a unique role to play in scientific research. The federal government is responsible for creating and maintaining a climate in which fruitful research can take place and flourish.”

“The work needs to be done in a systematic and sustained manner, and it needs long-term commitment,” explained Dr. Wang. “Without a consistent data process conducted by skilled scientists, artificial data would slip through the cracks and drastically alter our knowledge about climate change.”

“Scientific research is a critical component of our success as a society – whether it is our ability to protect the health and safety of our fellow citizens, preserve our environment, or ensure future economic prosperity,” added Daviau.

Dr. Wang played an important role in Canada’s Changing Climate Report released earlier this year. Canada’s climate is warming more rapidly than the global average and will continue to do so. The report helps illustrate that climate change is real and driven by human activity.

The Professional Institute established the Gold Medal Award program in 1937 to recognize professional public service employees whose outstanding work has led to the improvement and enhancement of public well-being. The program promotes greater awareness of the role and value of professional public services in Canada and globally. 

The 2019 Gold Medal was presented at PIPSC 100^th annual general meeting at the Hilton Lac Leamy Conference Centre in Gatineau, Que., on Nov. 8-9. The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada represents 60,000 public service professionals across Canada. Follow us on Facebook and on Twitter.

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For further information: Johanne Fillion, 613-228-6310, ext 4953 or 613-883-4900 (cell), jfillion@pipsc.ca

NOTE: The award presentation is available on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5MnVA7vU6E&feature=youtu.be

As of November 29, 2019, former PIPSC members who were paid at least one day by the Phoenix system can submit a claim for compensation.

If you worked in a department using the Phoenix pay system between April 1, 2016 and March 31, 2020, regardless of whether you experienced a pay problem, you are entitled to compensation.

You can file a claim for a cash payment equivalent of leave for the following fiscal years:

• 2 days for the fiscal year 2016-2017
• 1 day for the fiscal year 2017-2018
• 1 day for the fiscal year 2018-2019
• 1 day for the fiscal year 2019-2020

Similarly, if you are the legal representative of a former employee you may make a claim on their behalf. If you represent the estate of a deceased employee, you may make a claim on behalf of the estate.

To submit your claim online to the government, you will need your Personal Record Identifier (PRI) and the name of the last federal organization where you worked. You will receive a claim number that will allow you to track your claim online after it is submitted.  If you do not have your PRI, you can make a claim manually using a printable pdf form. 

Submit your claim

If you left the public service between April 1, 2016 and June 11, 2019 claim your credit for up to 5 days of leave through the process for former members.

If you were still employed on June 12, 2019 then you were compensated as a current employee and should have already received additional leave in your bank.

For any issues submitting an online claim or the printed pdf claim process you may contact support at the Treasury Board. 

Individual cases of Phoenix errors continue to be treated and former employees will still receive the pay they are owed.
 

Frequently asked questions

More Phoenix compensation for former and retired members

Former and retired members can also claim Phoenix compensation for up to $1000 in top-up clause money, out-of-pocket expenses or financial losses incurred due to Phoenix, or severe impacts due to Phoenix.

3.6 million Canadians cannot afford to fill their prescriptions. Our friends and neighbours are forced to choose between groceries and medicine.

Canada remains the only developed country with a universal public health insurance system that does not include universal coverage for prescription drugs.

We have joined 150 organizations across Canada calling on the new federal government to immediately implement universal, public pharmacare.

Read the Pharmacare Now statement 

National pharmacare should be a seamless extension of the existing universal health care system in Canada, which covers medically necessary physician and hospital services, and operates in harmony with the principles of the Canada Health Act.

We cannot continue with this dysfunctional patchwork system for drug coverage that is unfair, inefficient and expensive. We have more than 100 public drug plans and 113,000 private plans across the country. And we are paying the third highest drug prices in the world.

This situation is a violation of the principles and values at the heart of our universal public health care system and it is economically unsustainable.

A universal public pharmacare program will provide equal access and coverage to all Canadians.

It will save billions of dollars because governments will combine their bulk-buying power to negotiate lower drug prices and volume discounts with drug companies.
 
Canadians are proud of our universal public health care system, which is based on need and not ability to pay. It is time to build on this proud legacy and take the next bold step of implementing a universal public pharmacare program.

That is why we have joined with health care providers, non-profit organizations, unions, workers, seniors, patients and academics from across the country to urge all parties to work together to implement pharmacare before the next election.

Your new collective agreement: implementation and retro pay

The implementation process is underway for the AV, NR, RE, SH, SP, CNRC (LS, IR, RO-RCO, TR), CRA (AFS), OSFI, CNSC (NUREG), NEB and NFB collective agreements.

Your employer has 180 days from the date of signing the new collective agreement to:

1. raise your pay according to the new rates
2. provide retro pay for the time elapsed since the expiry of the old contracts and
3. pay you $400 as a penalty for extended implementation timelines

We expect a large number of members to receive their pay increases by the end of 2019. After this process is complete, your employer can start the process of calculating and distributing retro pay over the coming weeks and months.

It is okay if you have not received your wage increase yet. If the employer fails to provide retro pay within the 180 day deadline they will face additional financial penalties. Upon that failure, you will be awarded $50 on day 181 and again every 90 days to a maximum of $450. This is in addition to the $400 listed above.

Phoenix related pay issues:

We do not expect the implementation of the new pay rates to fix ongoing Phoenix related pay issues. If you were not receiving the correct rate of pay before implementation, it is unlikely the implementation process will correct the issue. As the implementation process progresses, we expect everyone will receive pay increases corresponding to higher rates of pay in the new collective agreements.

For information about what to do about ongoing Phoenix related pay issues or if you are seeking compensation for damage done by the pay system visit pipsc.ca/phoenix.

We have sought to address many common questions about the implementation of your new pay rate and retro pay.

Watch the retro pay webinar.

To find more details about your new rate of pay please visit your group page to find your pay rate table.

For more information, review the Frequently Asked Questions.

If you still require clarifications contact your steward.