Social Service and Health Workers Receive $100 Million in Low Wage Redress

Sheryl Burns, president of CUPE Local 1936 which is part of the CSS, said that union members are “super happy ” about the new agreement which will come into effect next April. Burns said that is because workers in community services have been struggling to get by in the Metro Vancouver area.

“Because our workers are paid so poorly, they can’t actually afford to live and work in the area,” she said. “Many workers work two and three jobs in order to survive — single parents go to food banks, it’s really horrible.”

See the full article at https://www.thestar.com/vancouver/2018/11/06/community-service-and-health-workers-win-100-million-in-redress-funding-for-low-wages.html

Proportional Representation Explained

By now, you probably have received your mail-in ballot on changing the way we elect our Provincial Government.  This short presentation talks about what Proportional Representation would mean for us here in BC.  Please feel free to download it!

Presentation On Proportional Representation

If you’re having problems viewing the PowerPoint presentation above, you can get a PDF version of it by clicking here.

If you haven’t received your ballot from Elections BC, you can contact them through their website at https://elections.bc.ca/.

Pictured here are CUPE Local 1936 President, Sheryl Burns, the CUPE BC Regional Director, Meena Brisard and her children, the Honourable Minister of State for Childcare, Katrina Chen, and Administrative Assistant to the Honourable Katrina Chen, Niki Sharma who joined CUPE Local 1936 Early Childhood Educators from Collingwood Neighborhood House to discuss British Columbia’s Child Care Plan of BC on Wednesday, October 10th.  The Assistant Deputy Minister of the Early Years and Inclusion Division, Ministry of Children and Family Development, Christine Massey was also present.  CUPE Local 1936 members were provided an opportunity to ask Minister Chen questions relating to the Childcare Plan of BC and expressed gratitude for the NDP Provincial Government’s commitment to Early Childhood Care and to those who provide childcare to the province’s children.

CUPE Local 1936 would like to thank Collingwood Neighborhood House Early Childhood Educator, Kulwant Kular who graciously prepared the room used by her program for this meeting.

INDIGENOUS LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

CUPE Local 1936 is located in unceded Central Coast Salish territory.  We wish to express our gratitude for the use of this unceded territory to all Central Coast Salish Peoples and to Qay’gayt and Musqueam First Nations who have ties to this territory.

CUPE Local 1936 believes that acknowledging Traditional Indigenous Territory is a way to honour and show respect to the original inhabitants of this land, on which we learn, work and play.

All in the CUPE family

Five locals give back to their community with picnic in the park

PORT MOODY—Cloudy weather was not enough to dampen spirits at the fourth annual Tri-Cities family picnic in the park on Saturday (September 22).

Before a spectacular view of Burrard Inlet, members from five CUPE locals served up hotdogs, snacks and refreshments while providing games and face painting for the kids. Visitors to Rocky Point Park were surprised and delighted to wander into the CUPE fest and be welcomed with offers of free food and children’s entertainment. Some gave donations to help offset the costs.

CUPE 386 (Coquitlam Civic) President Gord Willis said there are two reasons for holding the event, sponsored by locals 386, 498, 561, 825, and 1936.

“One is that it’s for our members who live and work in different cities—it gives them a chance to work together and get to know each other,” said Willis. “The other is that it’s for the public. People don’t often get to see us outside our jobs, and they don’t see us in the news unless it’s contract negotiation time. So having a fun event like this is a good way for the public to get to know us better.”

CUPE 825 (Port Moody Civic) President Christine Gervan thanked the many volunteers who helped stage the event.

“I certainly see the five locals as a team connecting and working together for the betterment of our members, strengthening CUPE and the community as a whole,” said Gervan.

CUPE 386 (Community Social Services of Greater Vancouver) President Sheryl Burns noted that the presence of Tri-Cities candidates for the October 20 community elections is a good sign of CUPE’s influence.

“Events like this enable us to make connections with community members and build relationships,” said Burns.

“It’s good that so many labour-endorsed candidates are here too, because the community knows we support them. It also shows the people who are running for office that CUPE keeps local politicians accountable.”

Halfway through the event, the clouds parted and the sun shone down on the park, drawing more visitors.

“Thankfully the weather was better than anticipated, so it was a wonderful event for the amazing volunteers and for those we were privileged to connect with,” said Gervan.

For more photos, visit the gallery.

CUPE 1936 applauds new supports and wage boosts for early childhood educators

“For many years, we have been calling for improvements to the system that cares for B.C.’s children and guarantees them a better future. With this announcement, the government has shown its commitment to moving towards accessible and affordable child care for all,” said CUPE 1936 President Sheryl Burns.

“ECEs are the heart and soul of the agencies that care for our children. The work they do to help B.C. kids at the earliest stages of life is critical to putting them on the right path for a successful future.”

Burns added that quality, affordable child care enables parents to get the education and training they need to access good jobs and allows mothers and fathers to work without having to endure years of child care wait lists or break the family budget. Investing in quality early learning and care helps reduce poverty and increase employment while stimulating the economy, she said.

To read the full story on the CUPE BC website, click here.

Survey
Sisters, Brothers and Friends:

At our 2017 National Convention, delegates adopted Resolution 36, which called for the creation of a Task Force on Governance to “conduct a comprehensive review of the governance and structure of our National Union.”

In March 2018, our National Executive Board confirmed the Task Force, which is made up of eight NEB members and eight CUPE activists who serve in elected positions at other levels of our union.

As part of our work, we are seeking input from CUPE members, locals and other chartered bodies. Attached you will find a discussion guide and a survey. The survey has been sent in the mail to your local union.  That same survey is also available to be completed online.

We hope you will make time to discuss this at your local meetings and provide us with your thoughts and ideas for how CUPE can improve its governance. Please complete the survey by November 15, 2018.

In solidarity,


MARK HANCOCK
National President

Community social service workers ratify three-year agreement

bulletin_cssba_ratification_2018_08_27

Community social service workers ratify three-year agreement, includes wage increases and significant money for low wage redress
Community social service workers have voted by 85.7 per cent in favour to ratify a new collective agreement that provides significant compensation increases for workers in this sector, while meeting the government mandate of improving the services British Columbians count on.
Community Living workers ratified the tentative agreement by 82.3 per cent.
General Services ratified by 95.8 per cent. Indigenous Services (previously Aboriginal Services) ratified by 50.9 per cent.

The weighted average ratification vote for all three sub-sectors was 85.7 per cent.
“These agreements restore the sense of respect and value for the critical work that community social services workers do throughout B.C., and the support of our members reflects that,” says CUPE 1936 President and CSSBA negotiating committee member Sheryl Burns. “There is always room for improvement, but we are pleased that the government is committed to acknowledging the caring professionals who deliver these important services.”

Highlights of the General Services and Community Living sub-sector agreements include:
• General wage increases of 2% in each year, plus significant money for low wage redress to address recruitment and retention issues in the sector
• Strong improvements to occupational health & safety including a
Provincial Occupational Health and Safety Council
• The restoration of statutory holiday pay for part-time and casual
employees
• A non-provincially funded childcare commitment from government to look at fair compensation for early childhood educators
• An improved process to assist the parties in better labour relations
• Enhancements to health and welfare benefit plans to start closing the gap with the health sector
• The renewal of the labour adjustment education fund and funding for health and safety and violence prevention training
Highlights of the Indigenous Services sub-sector agreement includes:

Changing “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in all areas of the collective
agreement.
• April 1, 2019 – Temporary Market Adjustment for C6 delegated social workers to Grid 25.
• April 1, 2021 – Temporary Market Adjustment C6 delegated social
workers to Grid 26.
• April 1, 2021 – a bump up to the next wage grid in each step of the
Growth Progression for delegated social workers.
• Effective April 1, 2021 members will be entitled to maternity and
parental leave allowance per the Public Service Agreement.
• The introduction of cultural competence as a determining factor in the appointment policy.
• A framework to discuss cultural competence at labour management.
• Language to highlight the employer’s ability to account for an applicant’s previous experience as a mechanism to address recruitment and retention concerns for delegated social worker positions.
• Indigenous alternate dispute resolution language broadened to
acknowledge the diversity among Indigenous communities and to
acknowledge culturally specific processes.
The new collective agreement will be in effect from April 1, 2019 until March 31, 2022.
Please share this update with your co-workers. Members are also encouraged to keep their email information up to date with their respective unions.

Information on Community Social Services tentative agreements now available!

The Community Social Services Bargaining Association (CSSBA) is pleased to announce that a tentative agreement has been reached for the renewal of Community Social Services collective agreements including Aboriginal Services, Community Living and General Services with the Community Social Services Employers’ Association (CSSEA).

Full details and highlights of what was negotiated are now available including:

The CSSBA Negotiating Committee is encouraging members to attend ratification meetings in the coming weeks as a full explanation of wages and compensation will be provided.

Details of ratification meetings and the voting process will be available soon.

The CSSBA Negotiating Committee is recommending that members vote YES to accept the terms of the tentative agreements.

 

You can also Visit the CSS Fair Deal website to find more bargaining information and resources.

The original bulletin is available by clicking here.