Post-ETA in the BC Region

LMDA – ETA News #6

The ETA was a disappointment in many ways for programs staff in BC and the union is still debating the fallout with both employers. We would have hoped that on the federal side when Mr. Leonidas was negotiating the ETA, Ms. Jackson was managing this transition and Mr. Netzel was signing off the agreement that the practical issues the union was raising would resonate. They had the clout to make the province reconsider and work towards the ETA that your management told you would be “equal to or better than Ontario”.

From the get go, we wanted the job descriptions and classifications done before the ETA was finalized. That way the “mapping” of jobs and provincial salary grids could have been reviewed and arising issues addressed within the ETA. The job descriptions and classifications became the proverbial “work in progress” at one meeting after another. All the same we continued to argue that, for example, the work week difference could have consequences well beyond just working less hours.

Unfortunately, the employers had a “draft” ETA they quite liked before we heard about it through the BCGEU. So the “get go” for the employer starting to talk to your union was a lot later in the process than it should have been. We were told that the province balked at most suggested changes as being “unfunded liabilities”. The carry-over of annual leave credits fell into that category for some unfathomable reason even though there are no additional salary dollars associated with taking time off during a given year.

So, post-ETA, the mapping of jobs to provincial salary grids is a source of new frustration for most transferring programs staff. You all live in the real world where inflation steadily chips away at income. The employers maintain that the “good news” is no one will take a loss in pay because of salary protection and everyone will work a shorter workweek.

We have all done the math. Salary protection is a welcome money preserver but it only lasts for three years. The cross mapping is being done on 2006 federal salary vs. 2008 provincial salary. For most, that means no real wage improvement for years and a few will come out of salary protection and still be behind.

For part-time workers, as we have seen in the PO group, they have been mapped over with full-time PO’s to the first level of the province’s AO21 grid at an hourly wage (base hourly wage of $27.53). With salary protection applied to the annual wage for full-time employees only, their hourly wage would be effectively topped up to $28.56. The result being, which the province stands by, is that a part-time PO will be working beside a full-time PO but earning less per hour.

And with all PO’s currently slotted into the first level of the AO21 grid, many have noted that a PO with 30 years experience will be at the same pay level as a PO with three months experience.

Inequities like these need to be addressed now by the provincial employer.

Both employers keep circling back to talking about 2.5 hours less per week. It’s a lame answer to our member’s wage issues and, frankly, we are sick of hearing about it. As the cost of living increases, going home a bit earlier every day is not going to help out with paying the bills.

We want the employers, particularly the province, to reconsider the salary mapping now. We want the employers to agree to requests to go to full time status from those transferring members who ask for that option before February 2, 2009.

We voiced concerns about the need for the employers to protect part-timers in the ETA and, unfortunately, this was not unfounded. We had concerns about classification outcomes and how those would match with provincial wage scales. Both employers like to say at this point is that the ETA “is a done deal” as though that document was just left on their doorstep one morning. They own it. And they should own the consequences so as to ensure those don’t just fall onto the shoulders of the transferring workers.

We have challenged the employers to find solutions outside of the ETA if need be. It’s not for want of hearing from the union or from our members as to what issues are of deep concern. So it’s not too late to start listening either, or for the employers to take positive action.

The Workforce Adjustment Agreement sits at the back of your collective agreement as an appendix and likely gets little attention for the most part……until its needed. Of all the protections and entitlements that have been negotiated by the bargaining agent with the employer, the WFA is one of the most precious. Without it……well, we doubt there would be any real consultation, timely or not, and all else would be subject to the employers’ needs and wants.

The union has insisted that WFA Committee meetings continue up to the date of transfer as we believe there is still work to be done. Your feedback and questions continue to assist us to show the employers where action is needed.