The deadline to fill out your provincial bargaining survey is quickly approaching. This survey is your chance to have a say on the priorities of your provincial bargaining committee as they prepare for negotiations.
The deadline is DECEMBER 17 – So please CLICK HERE today to fill out your survey TODAY!
It should only take about 15-20 minutes of your time. Your answers will be kept confidential, and they will be invaluable to your bargaining committee. The results will also be shared with your Local to help inform bargaining at your Local table. We want to hear your voice!
Update from the provincial bargaining committee
The provincial bargaining committee includes representatives from all regions of B.C. and helped develop the provincial bargaining survey for members. The committee has also been meeting regularly virtually over the past two months in preparation for bargaining, expected to start in early February 2022.
With the assistance of CUPE’s union education branch, committee members have taken part in bargaining training and strategic planning sessions. With varied levels of bargaining experience, the training sessions helped get all committee members up to speed on what to expect at the provincial bargaining table.
The committee members also contributed to strategic bargaining plan. This process included taking a in depth look at the current state of the province’s K-12 sector including the on-going issues and challenges facing our members and planning out the roles and responsibilities of all committee members to make this round of bargaining a true team effort.
Strategic planning also includes a communications plan focused on providing K-12 members timely updates throughout bargaining process and strengthening communications channels to members across the province (via Locals sending out and posting bargaining bulletins, social media etc.).
The next step for the bargaining committee will be to evaluate the bargaining survey results and begin developing bargaining proposals. This work will begin early in the New Year.
The provincial bargaining committee thanks all K-12 members who have already filled out their surveys and reminds all members to have their voice heard by taking part in this important work.
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Public health has recently removed the requirement to self-isolate after an exposure for those who have been fully vaccinated. As a result, BCPSEA has just advised the K-12 Presidents Council that the without prejudice and without precedent general paid leave previously available for asymptomatic staff members who are required to isolate due to a COVID-19 exposure will be ending as of December 31, 2021, subject to the following conditions:
The general paid leave is being discontinued for employees who can be vaccinated but have chosen not to receive the vaccination. After January 1, 2022, an unvaccinated asymptomatic employee who is required to isolate because they have been exposed to COVID-19 will be placed on an unpaid leave of absence.
An employee who has medical documentation from a practitioner substantiating a medical exemption from vaccination, as recognized by the Provincial Health Officer as being a contraindication to receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, would still be eligible for the paid leave.
Employees who have not received the COVID-19 vaccine due to a reason other than a medical condition, that they believe would otherwise entitle them to an accommodation under the Human Rights Code of British Columbia, may be asked for additional information to substantiate that request to be eligible for the paid leave.
Please contact your National Representative if you have any further questions regarding this matter.
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December 1st is World AIDS Day, and the beginning of Indigenous AIDS Awareness Week in Canada. On this day, CUPE renews its commitment to breaking down barriers for people with AIDS and HIV. Our union continues to support the global AIDS movement that struggles against discrimination and fights for improvements in public treatment programs.
The AIDS awareness movement has always shown that health is interconnected with many critical issues. Since 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has once again brought this to the forefront.
Poverty, violence, and other forms of marginalization mean the impacts of the ongoing HIV/AIDS epidemic are not shared equally.
Women, people with disabilities, racialized and Indigenous peoples have higher rates of AIDS and HIV. They also face greater barriers to testing, treatment, care, and other HIV prevention services. These barriers have become increasingly difficult to overcome during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This inequality is unacceptable, and our union remains committed to fighting it.
30 years ago, CUPE took a stand against the stigma and discrimination faced by people with AIDS and HIV. CUPE 4014 supported a grievance when Hans Olav Prins was taken off his job as a flight attendant at Pacific Western Airlines because he had AIDS. Pacific Western, which became Canadian Airlines in 1987, later taken over by Air Canada, suspended him even though two company doctors said he was fit to fly.
Hans died before the landmark arbitration decision that set a precedent protecting workers with AIDS and HIV from discrimination. His bravery and determination continue to inspire us to keep up the fight against the stigma faced by these workers.
Since then, CUPE has developed educational materials and workshops for members, challenged discrimination in health plans, and tackled criminalization and racism faced by people with AIDS and HIV.
On World AIDS Day, CUPE encourages its members to learn more about the AIDS awareness movement and to continue this important work in their locals.
Actions you can take include:
- Participate in the United Nations’ ongoing HIV/AIDS campaigns. For World AIDS Day 2021, UNAIDS is continuing to spotlight worsening inequalities and how to end them. Read the report, ‘Confronting Inequalities: Lessons for pandemic responses from 40 years of AIDS’.
- Insist that employers update their policies. An increasing number of organizations are required to redefine their priorities and align their business models with sustainable development norms. Ending AIDS by 2030 is an integral part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) unanimously adopted by United Nations Member States in 2015.
- Learn more about Indigenous AIDS Awareness Week.
- Invite a discussion, in person or online, with members about how HIV/AIDS is a union issue. Use CUPE educational resources, including our HIV/AIDS booklet, bargaining checklist and health and safety fact sheet.
- Attend or host a World AIDS Day event virtually or in your community.
BC Regional PSAC and PSAC's Vancouver Island Regional Women's Committee will be hosting a virtual vigil on December 6 in memory of the women murdered during the 1989 Montreal Massacre. Please see the event details below and the attached poster for more information:
Date: Monday, December 6, 2021
Time: 5:00-5:40pm PT
Registration: Click here
Event Contact: (250)-953-1050 or urrutim@psac-afpc.com