BURNABY—CUPE members in Community Health can see first-hand the impact of a B.C. government that values our public health care system. Since 2017, the BC NDP under Premier John Horgan have consistently demonstrated their commitment to the public services we all rely on. With the Horgan government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic in particular, the BC NDP have led the country in promoting public health while recognizing the importance of frontline health care workers who provide those critical services and keep the public safe.
This record stands in stark contrast to that of the BC Liberal Party, whose record while in government showed contempt both for you as public sector employees and for our public health care system as a whole. Among other things, the BC Liberals tore up contracts, slashed budgets, laid off health care workers, and left the rest of you with unmanageable workloads. For these reasons, CUPE’s Health Care Presidents Council is calling on CUPE members in Community Health to get active during the last two weeks prior to Election Day on October 24 and help re-elect the BC NDP government.
First of all, don’t forget to vote. There are options for physically distant voting in advance of E-Day. For information on how to vote, visit www.elections.bc.ca. There are many solid candidates running where you live and work, including Adrian Dix in Kingsway and Jennifer Whiteside in New Westminster. Adrian’s work as Health Minister during the pandemic, and Jennifer’s advocacy for public health care as secretary-business manager of the Hospital Employees’ Union, have been outstanding. CUPE also has members or former staff running as BC NDP candidates, including incumbent MLAs Rachna Singh in Surrey-Green Timbers and Lisa Beare in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows, as well as candidates Sylvia Lindgren in Shuswap, Cory Longley in Peace River South, Bryn Smith in Surrey-White Rock, and Dan Coulter in Chilliwack.
As well as voting for the NDP candidate in your constituency, you can make a difference by volunteering on a campaign and by sharing the BC NDP platform with your friends and family. With your support, we can continue the positive work the BC NDP has done to strengthen our public health care system for all British Columbians.
Of note, the website now states: “Eligible employees will begin to see temporary pandemic pay reflected on their paycheques in October. The timing for payments is dependent in part on the claim accuracy and when it is submitted for validation.”
We have also been informed that the temporary pandemic pay should be paid for overtime hours worked during the eligible period of March 15-July 4, 2020.
Shift to CBA wage grid offers boost for health workers on front line of opioid, housing crises
VANCOUVER—An agreement reached between the PHS Community Services Society, the Health Employers Association of BC, and CUPE 1004 will this week see approximately 600 CUPE health services and support workers at PHS shift from their Local Collective Agreement to an existing contract in the community health sector—a move that, with wage protection or improvements in every classification, should help restore dignity and respect for frontline staff who provide critical services for vulnerable populations.
Effective October 1, these workers’ Collective Agreement rights will fall under the Community Subsector Association of Bargaining Agents (CBA) contract, which runs from April 1, 2019 to March 31, 2022. All wage adjustments and general increases of the CBA Collective Agreement, retroactive to April 2019, will thus take effect for PHS CUPE 1004 members.
PHS runs 19 supportive housing and shelter buildings and also operates several safe drug consumption sites in Vancouver and Victoria. These CUPE members— mental health, outreach and home support workers, medical and dental assistants, and food service workers—work on the frontline of the opioid, the housing, and the homelessness crises. The daily challenges of their work have been further complicated by COVID-19.
“This melding of our contract to the CBA agreement is a major development for our Local. It represents significant gains for our members at the PHS,” said CUPE 1004 President Andrew Ledger.
“It really couldn’t come at a better time, given the challenges so many of our members have been facing during the pandemic. Bringing these members into the CBA agreement shows respect for their vital contributions to frontline health care services.”
In addition to the annual 2 per-cent-general wage increases for members in the community health sector, the CBA wage grid was recently adjusted to reflect low wage redress in moving the community subsector to parity with facilities. The classifications, wage rates and increment steps were determined through negotiation and the final recommendations of Mediators Vince Ready and Amanda Rogers.
The new MOA does not apply to PHS workers who are in CUPE 1936 or to CUPE 1004 nurse and paramedical professionals. The CUPE 1936 and 1004 collective agreements continue to apply to those employees, whose transition remains in process between the parties and the Mediators.
By joining the community health sector, PHS CUPE 1004 members will also fall under the representative umbrella of the CUPE Health Care Presidents Council (HCPC), which works to build a coordinated approach in addressing common causes for all CUPE community health workers. Through the HCPC, members benefit from coordinated bargaining, conferences for setting contract priorities, and sector-specific educational and member support opportunities.
BURNABY—Even during the pandemic, educational opportunities for union activists in community health don’t all have to be on Zoom. On September 24 and 25, eight CUPE members from Locals 15, 1004, 1978 and 4816 took advantage of physically distant space at the B.C. regional office to take combined workshops for CUPE’s Introduction to Shop Stewarding and Notetaking.
The sessions, facilitated by CUPE Health coordinator Chris Losito, were specifically tailored to the two health sector collective agreements CUPE works with, the HSPBA and CBA. Members reviewed the collective agreements while discussing the complicated structure of the sector and relationships with employers and the HEABC.
NOTICE TO CUPE COMMUNITY HEALTH MEMBERS UNDER HSPBA CONTRACT
Final deadline notice: Your participation needed in classification redesign survey
As part of the 2019-2022 collective agreement, the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Health Employers Association of BC (HEABC) established a working group to continue the work of modernizing the HSPBA Classification System. The purpose is to address anomalies and regularize a number of professions and professional practice issues that have developed in a changing health care system.
A total of $10 million was negotiated to fund the first steps of a wholesale restructuring of the classification system to address decades-old inequities in job categories.
Phased in over three years, the agreement is to make changes to the classification system that will address existing inequities, improve recruitment and retention, and support the government’s modernizing of health care delivery in the province, including the creation of community-based, multidisciplinary health care teams.
The next step of the joint committee’s work is to assess the circumstances of members’ jobs that may be affected by the next steps of the modernization project as outlined in provisions (r), (s), and (t) of Appendix A of the Memorandum of Agreement re HSPBA Classification Redesign – Interim Agreement. (Reference: Page 83 of the summary of changes to the HSPBA collective agreement.)
Members are asked to complete a survey to the best of their ability so that the union has the best information available in matching job functions to the appropriate classification and rate of pay.
Information gathered by CUPE is secure and will be used to establish correct classification and wage rates for members in jobs captured by this phase of the classification redesign.
Deadline for completion of the survey is midnight, September 14, 2020.
NOTICE TO CUPE COMMUNITY HEALTH MEMBERS UNDER HSPBA CONTRACT
Reminder: Your participation needed in classification redesign survey
As part of the 2019-2022 collective agreement, the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Health Employers Association of BC (HEABC) established a working group to continue the work of modernizing the HSPBA Classification System. The purpose is to address anomalies and regularize a number of professions and professional practice issues that have developed in a changing health care system.
A total of $10 million was negotiated to fund the first steps of a wholesale restructuring of the classification system to address decades-old inequities in job categories.
Phased in over three years, the agreement is to make changes to the classification system that will address existing inequities, improve recruitment and retention, and support the government’s modernizing of health care delivery in the province, including the creation of community-based, multidisciplinary health care teams.
The next step of the joint committee’s work is to assess the circumstances of members’ jobs that may be affected by the next steps of the modernization project as outlined in provisions (r), (s), and (t) of Appendix A of the Memorandum of Agreement re HSPBA Classification Redesign – Interim Agreement. (Reference: Page 83 of the summary of changes to the HSPBA collective agreement.)
Members are asked to complete a survey to the best of their ability so that the union has the best information available in matching job functions to the appropriate classification and rate of pay.
Information gathered by CUPE is secure and will be used to establish correct classification and wage rates for members in jobs captured by this phase of the classification redesign.
Deadline for completion of the survey is midnight, September 14, 2020.
NOTICE TO CUPE HEALTH SCIENCE PROFESSIONALS MEMBERS:
Classification redesign of HSPBA collective agreement: your participation needed
As part of the 2019-2022 collective agreement, the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association (HSPBA) and Health Employers Association of BC (HEABC) established a working group to continue the work of modernizing the HSPBA Classification System. The purpose is to address anomalies and regularize a number of professions and professional practice issues that have developed in a changing health care system.
A total of $10 million was negotiated to fund the first steps of a wholesale restructuring of the classification system to address decades-old inequities in job categories.
Phased in over three years, the agreement is to make changes to the classification system that will address existing inequities, improve recruitment and retention, and support the government’s modernizing of health care delivery in the province, including the creation of community-based, multidisciplinary health care teams.
The next step of the joint committee’s work is to assess the circumstances of members’ jobs that may be affected by the next steps of the modernization project as outlined in provisions (r), (s), and (t) of Appendix A of the Memorandum of Agreement re HSPBA Classification Redesign – Interim Agreement. (Reference: Page 83 of the summary of changes to the HSPBA collective agreement.)
Members are asked to complete a survey to the best of their ability so that the union has the best information available in matching job functions to the appropriate classification and rate of pay.
Information gathered by CUPE is secure and will be used to establish correct classification and wage rates for members in jobs captured by this phase of the classification redesign.
Deadline for completion of the survey is midnight, September 14, 2020.
You should see the provincial pandemic pay as a lump sum payment near the end of August or possibly early September. The employers are looking to make the process as streamlined as possible, which is why the payment has not yet been made.
Your CUPE Local will be informing your employer this week that collection of dues should be waived on the pandemic pay.
We would like to recognize the remarkable efforts of shop stewards, local executives and all other union activists for their role in supporting and advocating for all members during the pandemic. These activists volunteer their time, knowledge and skills to enforce your collective agreement rights and to communicate the needs of the membership to the employer.
Answers also available regarding employer obligations for return to work during COVID-19
BURNABY—CUPE’s National Health and Safety branch has developed a series of sector-specific guidelines to assist members during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The guidelines are part of an overall “kit,” which includes:
COVID-19: Health and safety practices while working during a pandemic
COVID-19: General Occupational Guidelines
COVID-19: Fact Sheet
COVID-19: The Right to Refuse Unsafe Work
COVID-19: Cleaning and Disinfecting
COVID-19: Personal Protective Equipment (Fact Sheet)
COVID-19: Use of Masks and Respirators (Fact Sheet)
CUPE has also released a Frequently Asked Questions document about issues related to the Employer’s obligations for return to work during the pandemic.
LEARNING CURVE—The pandemic has forced health care workers like Local 15 environmental health officer Nadia White to quickly adjust from solo assignments to team-based crisis response.
BURNABY—In Part Two of our feature on CUPE Community Health workers and COVID-19, our members from the Health Science Professionals Bargaining Association and Community Health Bargaining Association reflect on the personal challenges they have faced as workers since the pandemic began, what has inspired them during this period, and what lessons can be learned for health care delivery in the future. Here’s what they told us:
Name and CUPE Local: Nadia White, CUPE 15 Position: Environmental Health Officer (EHO), Level II – Health Protection Employer: Vancouver Coastal Health Job entails: Enforcing sections of the BC Public Health Act and regulations/guidelines pertaining to public facilities, including inspections of food premises, personal service establishments, and publicly run facilities to ensure compliance with provincial public health standards.
One of the biggest challenges has been the STEEP learning curve. Although the COVID work I am doing is public health, it is vastly different from my day-to-day duties. I went from having to focus on my own work and progress to leading a team of six members. Teams, systems and workflows are being created quickly and are ever-changing, all while trying to keep up with the spread and characteristics of the virus. Although not frontline workers dealing with COVID cases, we are working extremely hard behind the scenes to prevent the spread and relieve the burden on our healthcare system. Testing and tracing the spread of this virus is going to be our best defense until a vaccine is made and I’m truly proud of all of my coworkers doing this work.
Despite some unsavoury behaviour during these times, many people are trying to do their part in preventing the spread. I have seen stores and banks be diligent with the physical distancing of customers and provide sanitizer. Groups have formed on social media to help those in need in their communities, from accessing food to finding toilet paper. At work we’ve had a few organizations support us by donating meals, and of course the discounts that companies are providing. The biggest support I feel is the 7 p.m. cheer for healthcare workers: it’s quite emotional, looking out the office window and seeing restaurant workers banging their pots, people clapping on the street, and a convoy of first responders flashing their lights and blaring their sirens. It’s a reminder that, although the days are long and tiring, we are doing great work and doing right by the public. COVID has provided an opportunity to see the strengths and weaknesses of healthcare delivery. Although we’ve had other outbreaks such as SARS and H1N1, none have been this paramount. Nor could we have predicted how it was going to manifest. This is not the time to find fault or blame but to learn and grow from the experience.
Name and CUPE Local: Dawn Moon, CUPE 1978 Position: Dental Hygienist Employer: Vancouver Island Health Job entails: Working in the community to support the oral health needs of adults with developmental disabilities.
The biggest challenge has been the constant changing of directives for when PPE is worn, the lack of information around mitigating the risks when providing oral care, and the unknown of what dentistry will look like in the future. Since the transmission route is from the mouth, the caregiver and client are both at high risk. My role includes developing protocols on how to provide safe oral care. Currently, there are no guidelines that state what PPE is required and what disinfecting is needed after oral care to ensure that any droplets or aerosols produced do not put others at risk. Many caregivers have questions I am unable to answer around how to protect themselves when they do not have enough PPE or the correct PPE for the task.
I have seen the dedication of caregivers to provide a safe home for these clients during the pandemic. One group home supervisor told me that all the caregivers avoid interacting with other people outside of their family so they can reduce the risk of transmission to the clients when they come to work; they only have one person go to the grocery store from the group home, and that person only goes once a week. Seeing people put other’s needs ahead of their own is inspiring. The pandemic has highlighted that privatized long-term care puts people at risk, as it is run by for-profit companies who are motivated to cut corners to save money. There is not enough oversight to ensure that these service providers follow proper standards of care. This may have contributed to outbreaks in these communities during the pandemic. The pandemic has also showcased the role of allied health professionals in the health care system. I am so proud of my fellow CUPE members that are integral to the fight against COVID-19.
Name and CUPE Local: karina czyzewski, CUPE 15 Position: Social worker and Concurrent Disorders Counsellor Employer: Vancouver Coast Health, Downtown & Pender Community Health Centres Job entails: Working through a primary care clinic in the Mental Health and Substance Use unit, navigating systems and identifying resources available to clients, and using one-on-one sessions to provide advocacy, support recovery and healing, and facilitate access to needed services.
First, I found it really hard to work remotely…I thought it would be easier, but I find it exhausting for my mental health not to be sitting right across from someone. (And remote counselling is only accessible to people who have phones, which is not the case for many of our people.) Also, PPE medicalizes my job more than I am comfortable with. More recently, I was redeployed into a more acute-care situation at Vancouver Detox Centre, so I had to put all of my work on hold for two weeks. It was largely discharge planning, which is different from what I do. I’ve also had to put on hold things like community-based research that involves patient engagement, where clients receive income for advising us on how to make changes to ensure more equity-oriented care approaches. So that’s been really hard. Finally, people are really big on conspiracy theories down here, so there’s been a lot of people coming up to me when I’m wearing my mask, or coming to the clinic, and accusing us of making stuff up or overdramatizing, or they’re blaming the Chinese. So that’s been very hard to take as well.
The first time I heard people cheering at seven was literally right outside one of the clinics I work at, in Gastown. People were walking past Pender clinic and clapping or driving by and blowing their horns. It made me tearful and was super helpful to my morale. We’ve had so many moms of colleagues sew us masks, or headbands with little buttons, so we don’t hurt our ears with the PPE. That was really sweet. Some of the buildings have been able to provide honoraria to their residents to disinfect doorknobs and handles, so it’s been kind of cool to see people get into doing that and be compensated for it. It’s also been good to see the Health Authority be willing to show flexibility in prescribing, allowing people to isolate and follow the protocol when they have a substance use issue. One of the sweetest things I heard was when a client’s mom told me, ‘Thank you for working.’ It was unnecessary, but sweet and comforting.
We struggled with having clarity in our workflow before COVID, and I don’t think that’s been made easier with COVID. Clarity with the public health messaging, for example. My colleagues and I have been frustrated when we go outside and see people just hanging out. It would also help to have some clarity around the benefits process. Unfortunately, benefits are not actually accessible to people who are on disability or anyone who already receives provincial or federal money. Now it means that people in the community who do get that money could be audited and have to pay it back. So the process and criteria need to be clearer. And unfortunately that creates a health crisis in itself, because people who receive lump sums can end up OD’ing. One other thing is that all of us have pushed up our hand-cleaning and disinfecting skills in ways that weren’t happening before. And I think COVID has also raised the bar in terms of people’s understanding of food security in the Downtown Eastside.
Name and Local: Andy Healey, CUPE 1004 Position: Dayshift Coordinator/Mental Health Worker Employer: Portland Hotel Society Job entails: Providing homes to the homeless, supporting people through meals and programs such as gardening and artistic activities, and advocating for residents’ health care, helping to connect them with clinics and other services.
The number one, biggest challenge has been staffing. We need extra bodies to help out with the required sanitizing and support, particularly with the Home Support aspect of the job, but we’re constantly short staffed. Many employees left on medical leave at the beginning of the pandemic and they haven’t been adequately replaced. As for inspiration: even though many of our residents may not grasp the importance of physical distancing and the other behavioural changes that we need to be making, they’re really coming together as a community and looking out for each other. Our building has always felt a sense of community, but I feel like these days there’s a bit extra there. [But] frontline workers have been undervalued for far too long. We need faster access to supplies and services.
Name and Local: Allison Bell, CUPE 15 Position: Program Assistant Employer: Vancouver Coastal Health Job entails: Working with a team of nurses and clerical assistants on a school-based immunization program, as well as running twice-weekly clinics for youth and other clinics for adults and youth.
The biggest challenge is keeping up with the ever-changing rules and procedures for staying safe during the pandemic. The second challenge is navigating non-health workers’ opinions and reliance on misinformation about how I should be living and working during the pandemic. The most inspiring stories are of those people who are making the best of the situation while still keeping everyone safe. I applaud seniors’ residences that have found a way for their residents to visit family while social distancing. I cheer for all those friends and families who have thought outside the box and organized neighbourhood dinners and tailgate meetups while still social distancing. What we’ve learned is that we can no longer assume someone is healthy and not infectious just because they show no symptoms of illness. From this we could see a complete change in how public health is delivered. We could see public health services only be provided with Personal Protective Equipment being donned by health care providers.
Name and Local: Lindsay Fumalle, CUPE 1978 Position: Social Work Case Manager Employer: Vancouver Island Health Job entails: Developing guidelines, practice standards, workflows, forms, and education curriculum as part of the Community Resource Team with Home Care Strategy, and delivering education to support roughly 1,200 Community Health Services Clinicians and Management across Vancouver Island.
The biggest challenge has been the constant changing of directives and needing to be on top of creating resources that are relevant to the clinicians that use our documents and processes. My team is the practice resource support, so we also get constant e-mail and phone requests for clarification of information. As a team, we have a huge sense of responsibility to be able to answer questions and create resources quickly so that clinicians can provide quality care to clients. Another big challenge is working from home. I have spent the past seven weeks working on the computer from my kitchen table [with] two elementary-age children at home. Trying to juggle their needs while working from home has its difficult moments. Then you add in that their teachers set up mandatory virtual meetings for them during the day, while I am attending meetings of my own. I have never had to multitask to this extreme before.
It has been refreshing to see how understanding most people are. I have been teaching education sessions where people could actually see my kids running around behind me, or I’ve been on a call with my manager and she can hear them asking for more snacks and it’s been okay. For the most part, everyone understands that we don’t always have the answers right away, that we are doing our best to get things out as quickly as we can. On a personal side, I love seeing how people are connecting. And there is an increasing sense of not taking the people in your life for granted, of really appreciating them and what they mean to you. I hope this continues once the restrictions are lifted. The pandemic has brought the issues of private, for-profit healthcare to light: tax dollars going to companies that are cutting corners and not providing adequate care for our seniors, just so they can increase profits…It has also bought to light what unions such as CUPE have been fighting so hard to get and protect. Things such as safe work environments for all workers and paid sick time.
Name and Local: Sandy Bains, CUPE 15 Job Title: Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist Work Place: Public Health – South Community Health Centre Job entails: Working with families of children aged 0-5 to provide assessment, consultation, and therapy addressing a wide range of speech-language needs. (These include vocabulary development, improving understanding and response to directions and questions, as well as improving sentence length, understanding and use of appropriate grammatical structures, speech sound production, speech fluency, and social communication skills.)
The biggest challenge is being in a constant state of uncertainty. When the pandemic began, my team was directed that we would be redeployed to help support Public Health response to COVID-19. When my team’s redeployment was placed on hold, it was difficult to plan my week knowing that the possibility of redeployment was imminent. Working during the pandemic has forced me to take things day by day and set achievable daily goals for myself. Having so many people from the community participate in the seven-p.m. cheer, leave hearts and rainbows in their windows, and write messages on the sidewalk for healthcare workers, has been so inspiring. As for what we’ve learned: telepractice/virtual health can be a good option for some families, especially in reducing the barriers of accessing services (e.g. a long commute for family to attend an in-person session) or in reducing clinician travel time for outreach visits.
Name and Local: Toby Rader, CUPE 3403-01 Job Title: Homeless Outreach Social Worker Work Place: Canadian Mental Health Association (Port Alberni Branch) Job entails: Providing services, funded by BC Housing, to people experiencing homelessness or are at risk of homelessness.
The biggest challenge has been limiting my face-to-face contact with people, and the lack of services available to the marginalized population, whom I service the most. The one inspiring thing I have seen the most is the community of homeless and marginalized people helping each other out with places to sleep inside, sharing food and showers. We had nearly 30 people sleeping outside before COVID, and now there are fewer than 15 people. This is due to the community around the people sleeping rough bringing them inside. What we can learn is that [COVID-19] is often not just affecting the people who have jobs or are middle class or upper class. Our marginalized are affected to a great extent. While they are not at a higher risk of contracting COVID, they are often left with limited access to health care services during normal times. With COVID-19, the limited and often over-stretched health care services are even more siloed and full of barriers for those who live on the margins and are vulnerable already.
BURNABY—Even during the pandemic, educational opportunities for union activists in community health don’t all have to be on Zoom. On September 24 and 25, eight CUPE members from Locals 15, 1004, 1978 and 4816 took advantage of physically distant space at the B.C. regional office to take combined workshops for CUPE’s Introduction to Shop Stewarding and Notetaking.