CBA

Bargaining update: CBA negotiations to resume on September 12

Since pausing negotiations in June, six working groups made up of representatives from both union and employer sides have been working to develop recommendations around new certifications, occupational health and safety, decolonizing the collective agreement, and more. This work will now help streamline the bargaining process as we head back to the table on September 12.

As bargaining resumes, it’s more important than ever that our union has up-to-date contact information for all Community Health members – particularly in the event that we cannot reach an agreement with HEABC and have to take a strike vote. You can review and update your information here.

If you know of any of your co-workers who are not receiving these updates from our union, please ask them to update their information.

 

In solidarity,

Your Community Bargaining Association (CBA) Negotiating Committee

BCGEU strike update: What you should know

Dear CUPE members:

Since the BCGEU gave strike notice to the Public Service Agency on Friday (August 12), members of other unions including CUPE have been asking how any potential job action might affect them. With the BCGEU in a legal strike position as of 2:46 pm today (Monday, August 15), here is what we know:

  • The only BCGEU members who can participate in legal job action are members of the B.C. public service bargaining unit, sometimes referred to as the “Main Agreement”;
  • There are currently no other Provincial Bargaining tables at an impasse. Our members will continue to work; and
  • There are two “common sites” identified by HEABC in which Health Sector members work in a building where BCGEU members from the public service bargaining unit also work. For those sites, CUPE and other health sector unions will appear at the Labour Board to ensure that our members can safely enter the workplace without crossing a picket line. The local presidents of 1978 and 4816 have been advised of the sites and reviewed the access plans. More details will be shared at the local level if necessary.

The BCGEU job action will evolve over the coming days. If any developments impact our Health Sector members, we will send updates as quickly as possible.

In the meantime, if you see a picket line away from your place of work it is important not to cross it. CUPE members can show solidarity with striking workers by respecting their picket lines, showing support with a honk if driving by, or talking to the striking workers and giving comments of support from CUPE.

 

In solidarity,

Andrew Ledger
CUPE Health Coordinator

Bargaining update: Community Bargaining Association (CBA)

As noted in our last update, our committee was close to a deal on mobility and overtime by seniority. We are pleased to report that we arrived at an agreement in principle regarding mobility and are very close to an agreement on overtime distribution. This will be the first time our collective agreement contains these provisions, and we feel this is a significant achievement to finish on as we pause bargaining for the summer.

Our next bargaining dates are scheduled for September. In the meantime, here are a few things you can do:

  • Watch. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out “Caring in a Pandemic: Living and Working Through COVID” . Hear from fellow CUPE members in Community Health talking about their work and personal lives—a good reminder of why we’re seeking improvements at the bargaining table.
  • Read. Head to the “CBA Updates” page of the CUPE Community Health website to catch up on all the bulletins covering negotiations so far.
  • Update. We’re asking all members to update their contact information by visiting here.
  • Spread the word. Please check with your co-workers to make sure they are also receiving these email updates and share this bulletin with them.

As you may have heard, talks have currently broken down between the Public Service Agency (PSA) and BCGEU members working in the public service who took a strike vote in June. We’ll continue to watch closely as they fight for a fair and equitable contract that addresses the rising cost-of-living – a key issue with which all union members bargaining this year are concerned.

In solidarity,

Your Community Bargaining Association (CBA) Negotiating Committee

 

CBA, HEABC close to agreement on non-monetary items, talks pause until September

After several bargaining sessions with the Health Employers’ Association of BC (HEABC) over the past several weeks, we have come very close to agreement on issues around mobility, overtime, and other non-monetary items.

Since our last update, we’ve also created the following working groups:

  • Arbitrator/Mediator Lists
  • MOA 6-9, and 26—Memoranda of Agreement relating to Superior Provisions and New Certifications
  • Membership Cards/Member Information
  • Occupational Health and Safety
  • Pandemic/Natural Disaster
  • ISAR— a working group discussing the In Plain Sight Report, Reconciliation and decolonizing the collective agreement.

These working groups are made up of representatives from both the union and employer side and are tasked with writing recommendations that will help streamline bargaining. The working groups will meet through the next couple of months while we are not at the bargaining table. Through the summer, we will reach out to update your member information and prepare ourselves in case we cannot reach an agreement with HEABC and need to take a strike vote.

We are not currently taking a strike vote in Community Health, as the health sector tables are not at an impasse. Unlike other provincial bargaining tables, the CBA and HEABC continue to hold meaningful discussions and we look forward to returning to the table on September 12.

In the meantime, please remember to review and update your contact information in order to receive important bargaining updates. Make sure your personal e-mail and cell phone number are on file. You can update your contact info up to date here.

In solidarity,

Your Community Health Bargaining Association Team

 

Decriminalization a ‘good first step’ in destigmatizing drug use, says CUPE Health Care Presidents Council

VANCOUVER—Yesterday’s announcement that the federal government plans to decriminalize small-scale possession of illicit drugs in B.C. represents a long-overdue policy shift away from stigmatizing substance use and instead addressing drug addiction as a health issue, says CUPE’s Health Care Presidents Council (HCPC).

Starting next year, Canadians aged 18 years and older will be able to possess up to a cumulative 2.5 grams of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA within British Columbia. This exemption from the law criminalizing drug possession means there will be no arrests, charges or seizures for personal possession at or below the 2.5-gram threshold.

The new federal policy follows a request from the provincial government for an exemption. Both federal and provincial ministers for mental health and addictions, Carolyn Bennett and Sheila Malcolmson, respectively, announced the policy shift together at yesterday’s media conference.

“CUPE health care workers are encouraged by this first step in addressing the opioid crisis that many of our members have been working for years to combat. It’s a good first step,” said HCPC chair Tuesday Andrich.

“We have been calling for just such a policy change for a very long time, so it’s good to see all levels of government taking the issue seriously. This kind of collaboration is difficult, but the united front that B.C. and Ottawa have shown demonstrates that all levels of government can work together to effect positive change.”

Andrich added that much more work needs to be done to address the poisoned drug supply crisis in B.C.

“Now that we are seeing this change around decriminalization, let’s see if they can do it on the safe supply issue,” she said.

“Many people still hide their addiction and use drugs alone, and with an epidemic of illicit drug toxicity, this can mean dying alone. Evidence-based research—and our own experience in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island—tells us that safe supply will have the greatest impact on saving lives, and CUPE will continue to advocate for these necessary changes.”

Health Care presidents reissue call for more sector support

BURNABY—The community health sector continues to suffer from systemic challenges arising from staffing shortages, workload, and mental health issues and needs more support in these areas, CUPE’s Health Care Presidents Council concluded at their quarterly meeting held on Thursday.

In addition to local updates and a sector bargaining review, Council members discussed a report from Local 15 member Benita Spindel, CUPE’s Enhanced Disability Management Program (EDMP) representative. Following Spindel’s report, which raised some of the challenges of her rising case load, the presidents discussed the status of the EDMP and explored ways to better support the program in the future.

Council members also held a longer discussion about raising more public awareness of sector challenges through broader consultation with constituent unions of the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Community Health Bargaining Association (CBA).

In bargaining, no further talks have been scheduled for the HSPBA table after Thursday’s session. The CBA also wraps up bargaining this week, with two more sessions scheduled in June.

Also at the meeting, HCPC chair Tuesday Andrich (CUPE 1004) thanked retiring CUPE National representative Lee Mossman for his service as sector coordinator and welcomed CUPE National representative Andrew Ledger, former HCPC chair, as the new sector coordinator.

CBA makes progress on non-monetary bargaining issues

Over the past two weeks, your bargaining association has been meeting with the Health Employers’ Association of BC (HEABC) to discuss key proposals related to your mobility within health authorities and ways to make your collective agreement gender neutral and more inclusive for Indigenous and Transgender workers.

We are working to ensure that everyone sees themselves represented in the language of your collective agreement.

We are scheduled to meet again, starting on May 9, for two weeks. Our aim in those sessions is to conclude all non-monetary talks and move into more substantial negotiations on monetary issues.

Your Community Health negotiations team remains committed to achieving wages that are in line with wages for workers doing the same jobs under the health facilities collective agreement and that keep up with the rising cost of living.

We’ll keep you updated when we return to the table.

In solidarity,

Your Community Health Bargaining Association

Employer’s initial wage proposal is deeply disappointing

The Health Employers’ Association of BC (HEABC) tabled their initial wage proposal for the Community Health agreement, and we are deeply disappointed. We need a significant investment in front-line workers to address the staffing crisis in community health and we won’t accept anything less.

We expect challenging monetary negotiations, but the last weeks of bargaining have shown us that when we stand together, with your support, we can achieve important improvements for our sector.

These past weeks we addressed a number of key areas including overtime, harassment, and portability of seniority. At the table we shared personal stories from your workplaces, and made it impossible for the employer to ignore the issues you face on daily basis and the deteriorating state of our sector. Thanks to all of you who took the time to share your personal stories with us.

We’ve heard from you that you’ve had to choose at times between caring for your children or your clients because of forced overtime due to short staffing. You told us that many community health workers are forced to put yourselves at risk, driving at unsafe speeds, to stick to an unrealistic schedule. Some of you are losing a decade or more of seniority when you apply for a new position—even when it is with the same employer.

There are countless stories, and the common theme is that workers in the community health sector have been overworked, underpaid and disrespected for too long. With your help, we’ve moved the employer on some of our top issues but there is still a lot of work to do. We will all need to do more.

We will be calling on you to talk to your coworkers and ensure that they are receiving updates and ready to act when it’s time to apply more pressure to the employer. We’ll be back at the bargaining table in April and will keep you updated. In the meantime, if you need to update your contact information, please visit this link: https://forms.office.com/r/xBwFjh3WF8.

 

In solidarity,

Your Community Bargaining Association

Bargaining bulletin: CBA pushes for solutions to recruitment and retention crisis

Your Community Bargaining Association (CBA) tabled our proposals last week as we began talks with the Health Employers’ Association of BC (HEABC).

At this point in time, we are pushing to achieve non-monetary priorities that you identified as important measures to address the recruitment and retention crisis in the sector.

The employer has recognized that we share some common goals. They are aware of the dire situation caused by short-staffing and made worse by the pandemic.

We are continuing in-depth discussions this week on scheduling, hours of work, overtime, and mobility of seniority. Once we have dealt with all non-monetary issues, we will move on to wages, benefits and other monetary issues.

We will update you as talks progress.

In solidarity,

Your Community Bargaining Association

Bargaining for your new collective agreement starts today

Your Community Bargaining Association (CBA) Negotiating Committee held our bargaining conference this week and will begin negotiations on your behalf with the employers in the Health Employers’ Association of BC (HEABC) on February 3, 2022.

More than 21,000 workers in the community health sector from eight different unions across the province, including 1,489 CUPE members, brought forward ideas and proposals for bargaining.

With your input, we finalized our priorities, and we are ready to meet our counterparts and begin negotiating a new collective agreement.

You told us you need a fair deal that will help close the gap in wages and benefits compared to other health care agreements, allow you to better care for your mental health, and give you greater control over your working conditions.

The pandemic has shown the public how badly understaffed we are in the health care sector and highlighted the impact that has on workers and clients. Because of increased public support for our issues, we have a unique opportunity to win the improvements we need to our wages and working conditions in this round of bargaining.

We look forward to representing you at the bargaining table and we will keep you updated throughout negotiations.

In solidarity,

Your Community Bargaining Association Negotiating Committee