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News Feed Mar 12 Mar 11 Mar 11 Mar 10 Mar 8 Feb 29 Feb 14 Feb 13 Feb 13 Feb 11 |
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Confronting the Myths |
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SICK LEAVE BANK Myth: SGEU management does not have the ability to manage sick leave within its workforce. Reality: The collective agreement (Article 25.1-3) allows the employer to request supporting medical evidence and cease sick leave payments. As in all workplaces, management has the right to discipline employees who abuse sick leave. Myth: The sick bank has created a sick leave culture among SGEU staff. Reality: SGEU leaders acknowledge that, on average, SGEU staff use four days sick leave per year whereas government employees use twice that amount. Reality: There are often allegations by individuals and groups (the Canadian Taxpayers’ Federation, for example) that government workers use more sick leave than other workers. The government does not respond to this charge by agreeing to claw back sick leave benefits for public service workers. Each case is managed individually within the existing collective agreement, labor law and the applicable jurisprudence. We challenge SGEU to appropriately manage its human resources, not make unsubstantiated accusations of abuse. Myth: SGEU staff abuse the sick leave bank Reality: Some SGEU leaders have been citing the fact that an individual was on the sick bank for 17 years as an example of abuse. But, the truth is that the employee in question was out-of-scope, and Local 481agreed to a management request to allow that person to access sick bank benefits. Reality: If management believes that sick leave is being abused, it has typical management-rights to address specific problems. Management is entitled to investigate and substantiate suspicions of abuse, and then to take appropriate steps to redress the situation. Failure to do so is simply poor management. Myth: The sick leave bank is a huge unfunded liability. Reality: SGEU does not pay out sick days remaining in a person’s bank upon retirement nor is there any other form of payout with this benefit. Indeed if SGEU was to close its doors today it would not cost the union one penny in the pay out of sick leave. Reality: The sick leave bank is underwritten by the LTD. Staff on long-term sick leave receive 80% of benefits from this insurance plan, so the cost to SGEU is 20% of that individual’s salary, not 100%. Myth: SGEU management bargaining proposal offers to bridge current employees to LTD if they do not have enough sick leave earned. Reality: This had been in SGEU’s proposal but it was withdrawn almost a year ago. Reality: CEP Local 481 has been willing to address management concerns about the sick leave bank. We have tabled proposals that would:
These offers have been rejected by the SGEU bargaining committee. Reality: The sick bank has not created a sick leave culture within our staff. Our members’ health is affected, however, by work overload created by SGEU’s reluctance to hire more staff despite increasingly heavy workloads.
WAGES Myth: SGEU is justified in trying to lower the wages of its staff to bring them into line with SGEU members. Reality: Trade unionists do not try to achieve wage equity by bargaining down the wages of higher paid workers. Do we agree with those members of the public who argue that liquor store employees should not be paid more than the low wage rates paid to a clerk in a 7-11 convenience store? Do we agree with those individuals who say that government workers should not earn more than an employee doing similar work in the private sector, and do we then choose to bargain lower wages for PSGE members, to ensure that the wage gap does not grow? Of course not. Trade unionists achieve equity by working hard to bargain better wages for all workers. Reality: Our wage request is reasonable. We are asking for 13.1 per cent in the same five-year period that most SGEU members received 18.6 per cent. The CEP Local 481 wage proposal is: 0% July 1, 2004 1% July 1, 2005 1% July 1, 2006 2.6% January 1, 2007 3.5% July 1, 2007 5% July 1, 2008 Total: 13.1% over 5 years.
Most SGEU members received: 1% 2004-05 3% 2005-06 2.6% cola 2005-06 3.5% 2006-07 4.0% 2007-08 4.5% 2008-09 Total: 18.6% over 5 years
SGEU is offering a wage package lower than the rate of inflation:
Reality: SGEU staff wages already lag far behind those paid to workers in other unions. Currently, SGEU Agreement Administration Advisors are paid 23 per cent less than staff who do the same work in comparable unions across the country. They also earn about $10 an hour less than the Labour Relations Consultants who do the same type of work for the government of Saskatchewan. Administrative Assistants who work for SGEU earn 10 per cent less than their counterparts in other unions. It is sadly ironic that SGEU chooses to single out administrative assistants as being overpaid. For years SGEU proclaimed that "Pay equity is our priority", but when it comes to its own workers, the union leadership chooses to attack this female-dominated group, rather than support these women’s right to a decent wage. The wage data cited above is based on a broad sample of unions comparable to SGEU: B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union, Alberta Union of Public Employees, Manitoba Government Employees’ Union, Ontario Public Service Employees’ Union and the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees’ Union.
PENSION Myth: SGEU alone is facing increased costs due to difficulties with the staff pension plan. Reality: CEP Local 481 members are already contributing an additional 2.5 per cent in pension contributions and will be forced to contribute another 3 per cent in January 2008. This amounts to a 5.5 per cent cut in pay, with no corresponding increase in pension benefits. Myth: Staff are not interested in doing anything to address the problems with the pension plan. Reality: Of course we want to address pension plan issues. After all, it is our futures that are at stake. However, we are not prepared to abandon our other bargaining priorities because we now find ourselves facing difficulties with our pension plan. Now more than ever, we need a wage increase to help offset the hefty pension contribution rate increases we are shouldering. Reality: Our pension plan dilemma stems, in part, from SGEU’s decision to take a contribution holiday a few years ago when we were in a surplus situation.
STATE OF LABOUR RELATIONS Myth: CEP Local 481 did not give proper strike notice before commencing job action November 6, 2007. Reality: CEP Local 481 served legal strike notice in April. Myth: SGEU leaders locked-out staff because CEP did not discuss protocol to ensure that assets and private, personal information are secure when they go on strike or that SGEU members can vacate office buildings without being called scabs. Reality: It is up to SGEU management to take the initiative to hold such discussions. Strike notice was served months ago. There was plenty of time and plenty of warnings that such discussions were needed. No members or out-of-scope staff in the buildings were hindered or called scabs as they left on November 6. Myth: CEP was aware of [the fact that Provincial Council voted to lock-out staff at its June meeting prior to initiating the job action on November 6, 2007.
Reality: Provincial Council discussions are held in camera and even if minutes of the meeting had been circulated, we would not have been able to see this decision. We were unaware that this motion was passed at Provincial Council.
TRADE UNION PRINCIPLES Myth: It’s fair game for SGEU to try to force concessions on its staff and then lock them out when they refuse to give in. Reality: When unions are employers, they are morally bound to meet the highest standards of fair play and good treatment. The true test of union leaders’ principles is how well they apply them to their own employees. SGEU leaders have failed this test by locking out their employees, using one of the most despised management tools available. Reality: CEP Local 481 requests that SGEU provide its negotiating committee with the authority to negotiate a fair agreement.
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