SEIU-West is entering into a process to review the Local’s constitution.
Pinned
COVID Reopening Plans
Even though public health orders have been lifted effective July 11, 2021 in Saskatchewan, we all should remember that the pandemic is not ‘over’.
Apply Now! SFL Convention 2021
The Saskatchewan Federation of Labour (SFL) will hold its annual convention virtually on October 20-22, 2021.
The SFL represents over 100,000 hard working union members in Saskatchewan, from 37 national and international unions. Its goal is to improve working people’s lives throughout the province, whether organized or unorganized, and regardless of affiliation to the SFL.
Letter To The Editor:
Where is our world heading?
We are leaving a dark, ugly and hateful world behind us for our children and grandchildren to live in if we don’t stand up and speak up against the realities in our world.
Letter To The Editor: Saskatchewan's health-care system is in peril
As the virus embedded itself in the province, our health-care system immediately began to suffer. Elective procedures were postponed, non-critical services closed, and the brutal short-staffing issue, which existed long before COVID-19, was compounded. Patients coming into hospital who would have otherwise been admitted are being treated on an outpatient basis, leaving the patient’s health potentially at risk.
Applications Due: Activist Training Camp 2021
Are you outgoing, friendly, approachable, and energetic? Are there social and political issues you are passionate about sharing? If so, Activist Training Camp may be for you!
The goal of this one day course is for participants to learn, understand and engage on:
• Anti-oppression and building an inclusive front
• Skills-share opportunities with other activists around the Union
• Strategic thinking/planning about your activism
• Activities to enhance your organizing, communication, and leadership skills
You will be reimbursed for lost wages or will be provided with an honorarium for your attendance on days not scheduled to work. If restrictions permit the training to proceed ‘in-person’, your union will cover travel, hotel, and meal expenses. Otherwise, the training will be online and understandably these three costs would not be required.
The deadline for applications is July 16, 2021 at noon.
Letter to Brad Redekopp, MP, Saskatoon West by Janine Lazaro
Political Action and Awareness Committee (PAAC) member, Janine Lazaro, engaged with the CLC (Canadian Labour Congress) campaign, Jobs and economic recovery for working families by writing her Member of Parliament, (MP) Brad Redekopp as a constituent.
If you want to join an of the CLC campaigns click here.
Below is Janine's letter and Brad's response.
Application Deadline: Member Facilitator Training 2021
SEIU-West is in the process of recruiting up to four facilitators for our internal membership training programs. The successful applicants will excel in communication and leadership skills and will gain valuable knowledge around their union’s practices and the greater labour movement.
Are you outgoing, friendly, approachable, and energetic? If so, this facilitator training opportunity may be for you!
The facilitator training, which is tentatively set for the fall of 2021, is a four day workshop that will deliver on several components that are key to creating a well-balanced and engaging learning environment for SEIU-West members, such as:
- popular education
- public speaking
- active and unbiased listening
- understanding class/group dynamics
- diffusing situations
- time management and agility
- acquiring resources and basic online training skills
- quality session prep
Applicants must be available to attend all four days of training (dates TBD).
You will be reimbursed for lost wages or will be provided with an honorarium for your attendance on days not scheduled to work. If restrictions permit the training to proceed ‘in-person’, your union will cover travel, hotel, and meal expenses. Otherwise, the training will be online and understandably these three costs would not be required.
Applicants will need to fill out the online Facilitator Training Expression of Interest Form by July 30, 2021.
Extendicare Canada Inc. (ECI) Bargaining Bulletin No. 1
Date: June 21, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers at Extendicare,
Your Extendicare Bargaining Committee met on Friday June 11, 2021. The committee membership has changed. The members now are Lynette Pinfold – Moose Jaw unit chair; Colleen Watson – Elmview unit chair; Lisa Virtue – Sunset unit chair; Marlene Thomson – Parkside unit chair and Lori Klus – Preston unit chair. Union representatives are Tracy Goodheart and Katelyn Almen. Chief spokesperson will be Bob Laurie, director of Contract Bargaining & Enforcement for SEIU-West.
Statement on announcement of unmarked graves at Cowessess First Nation
Apply to join the Joint Regional
Duty to Accommodate/
Return to Work Committee
Return to Work Committee
SEIU-West is looking for three members to volunteer to be our representatives on the Joint Regional SEIU-West/former Saskatoon Health Region (SHR) DTA/RTW Committee (Duty to Accommodate/Return to Work).
You must work within the former SHR.
2021 National Indigenous Peoples Day
For generations, many Indigenous peoples and communities have celebrated their culture and heritage on or near the summer solstice, marking its significance as the longest day of the year. Since 1996, Canada has celebrated June 21 as National Indigenous Peoples Day, to recognize and celebrate the unique heritage, diverse cultures, distinct languages, spiritual beliefs and outstanding contributions of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.
While there is so much to celebrate, we must also acknowledge the collective grief and anger of Turtle Island after the recent discovery of the remains of hundreds of children in Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc (Kamloops) residential school, as well as other former residential school sites across Canada. While that grief and anger cannot be ignored, we can collectively work to implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and other efforts to recognize the rights of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people in Saskatchewan.
These rights have been internationally codified in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP).
We acknowledge that before reconciliation, there must be truth. Truth is critical.
We know we must do better, every day of the year.
We must commit to continuing to learn, and unlearn, as much as we can about the culture, heritage and true history of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Listen to their voices. Build connections with Indigenous Elders, colleagues, leaders and communities. Engage in meaningful dialogue. And do your homework, if you have not already:
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action
A few of today's events:
The Office of the Treaty Commission has posted a list of virtual and in-person events being held across Saskatchewan.
The City of Regina is hosting its ninth annual celebration of National Indigenous Peoples Day through a livestreamed event on its Regina National Indigenous Peoples Day Facebook page. Running from 10 to 11:30 a.m., the event includes a lineup of drumming, song, spoken word, a powwow performance, greetings dancing and more.
The Royal Saskatchewan Museum is celebrating Indigenous culture and art through a livestream from its ethnology collection. At 1:30PM join Indigenous programming specialist Theresa Walter, conservator Victoria Kablys and Métis artist Holly Aubichon as they walk through the items in the museum’s Indigenous Studies Collection, including beadwork, quillwork and leatherwork.
SaskMusic and FACTOR Canada are presenting a special online concert in honour of National Indigenous History Month, airing 7 p.m. on Thursday June 25 on SaskMusic’s Facebook and YouTube pages. More than a local dozen artists from different musical styles have been paired with video mentors to create unique music videos over the past weeks. Following June 25, the concert will also be available to watch on SaskTel maxTV Local on Demand.
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is premiering Kevin Settee’s four-part series of short films, The Lake Winnipeg Project, at Indigenous Cinema, the NFB’s online collection of Indigenous-made films.
Canadian Blood Services: Bargaining Bulletin No. 7
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Date: |
June 18, 2021 |
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Location: |
Saskatoon |
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
In our last update we announced that the Union would hold a ratification vote on the Employer’s last offer, made at conciliation. The vote was held on June 8, 2021 and the members rejected the Employer’s offer by an overwhelming margin.
As you all know, your bargaining committee has been trying to bargain for a collective agreement for a very long time. For all of that time the Employer has maintained the same position on wages--you get what CUPE gets. The Union told them way back then that we didn’t think that was fair and that it wouldn’t work. We asked them to bargain for something that was fair and that would work. That was almost 5 years ago. The Union warned the Employer that its final offer (which was basically the same as its previous offers) would probably not be accepted by the membership. The Union has informed the Employer that the membership has voted no to their last offer and has asked them to return to the bargaining table. The Employer has agreed to meet again to bargain but also advised that they will not initiate the next round of bargaining by bringing a new proposal.
The Union and your bargaining committee has tried everything, including getting the help of a conciliator and finally taking strike votes on November 6 & 7, 2019 to get the Employer to make a fair and reasonable offer that the members would accept. The Employer, in order to deny the members the right to strike, responded by asserting that the parties need to meet the essential services provisions of the Saskatchewan Employment Act. The Union has filed an Unfair Labour Practice complaint with the Saskatchewan Labour Relations Board (SLRB) asserting that the Employer is refusing to bargain and that they are using essential services legislation to influence bargaining and not to protect the public. We sought a hearing with the SLRB to make our case that we don’t think the essential services provisions apply to CBS. That hearing was long delayed for a lot of reasons, but began on June 14, 2021, and will continue in October 2021.
In the meantime the Union will continue to try to find a way to bargain for a fair collective agreement with the Employer. The Union’s bargaining committee will be meeting in the week of the June 21 to plan the next step in bringing the Employer back to the table and getting an offer that your committee can recommend for ratification. Please watch for further updates.
The Union and the bargaining committee members thank you for your patience and solidarity and congratulate everyone for continuing to provide valuable services to the public through this challenging time.
Your SEIU-West bargaining committee:
SEIU-West members: Heather Dyck (Unit Chair, CBS Saskatoon); Kristie Pearton (Unit Vice-Chair, CBS Saskatoon); Jason Coombs (Bargaining Committee member, CBS Regina); Tanya Palaniuk (Bargaining Committee member, CBS Regina);
SEIU-West staff: Cam McConnell (Negotiations Officer); Shelley Johnson (Union Representative).
SAHO/SEIU-West Bargaining Bulletin (2nd edition) No. 23
Date: June 18, 2021
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
I know it’s hard to believe that we’re still providing bargaining updates, but there have been some matters that we wanted to communicate to our members.
We’ve reviewed and corrected some errors in the wage schedules; provided some edits and corrections to the new collective agreement language; and we are having some issues with last minute additions that SAHO put on the new letters of understanding (LOUs). Normally these are signed by SAHO and SEIU-West’s bargaining team, as the parties to the collective agreement; however, now the Saskatchewan Health Authority has been added as a third signatory.
So why does this matter? SAHO is legally the official and exclusive bargaining agent for the healthcare employers and affiliates listed in the Collective Agreement. What does it mean if one employer now is superior to all the other employers in the collective agreement and enjoys potentially the same bargaining position as SAHO, which is supposed to be the SHA’s bargaining agent? Does this mean that the SHA can now withdraw from the LOU that everyone signed? Does it mean that an LOU signed by more Employer entities than SAHO (a potential violation of the Saskatchewan Employment Act) may be deemed null and void, or does it mean that only the SHA’s participation would be voided? The union has asked SAHO for their opinion on these matters, and awaits their response.
Beyond that, bargaining and reaching a tentative agreement is predicated on the notion that all issues have been thoroughly canvassed by the parties and there would be no surprises in the final collective agreement document. There was no discussion between the parties at the bargaining table regarding adding a separate signature line for the SHA in our new LOUs, and in the renewal of one particular LOU which sets out the Employer funding formula for the extended health and enhanced dental benefits plan. The union wants to be absolutely sure that this last-minute SAHO amendment to the LOUs will have no effect on the legality of the LOUs or on the commitments made in those LOUs.
While we resolve this issue, the production of the collective agreement books is being delayed.
As an interim measure, please refer to the current collective agreement and read it in conjunction with the language of the tentative agreement. We provided those electronically, and will put a copy on our website. If you want an electronic copy, just use the ‘contact us’ link on the website and we’ll get one in the mail to you. If you wish to check your rate of pay, please call the MRC for assistance.
In solidarity and respect,
Your SEIU-West Bargaining Committee
To download a PDF copy of this bulletin, please click here.
Your SEIU-West SAHO Provincial Bargaining Committee:
CHR: Janice Platzke (SEIU-West Treasurer) • FHHR: Brenda Berry; Donna Gallant • HHR: Colleen Denniss • SHR: Judy Denniss; Rick Brown; Carla Saworski; Kim Wyatt; Charlene Sarafin; • Staff: Bob Laurie (Dir. of Bargaining and Contract Enforcement); Russell Doell (Deputy Dir. of Bargaining and Contract Enforcement); Cam McConnell (Negotiations Officer) • President: Barbara Cape