ARTICLES 9-11, 27-29 and 36
ARTICLE 9, SENIORITY
9.01 Definition
- For purposes of this Agreement, seniority shall be defined as the length of continuous service with the District as a regular employee, including the probationary period, provided that regular part time and regular seasonal employees shall accumulate seniority on the basis of their hours actually worked. “Hours worked” shall include all paid straight time hours, hours compensated while on WorkSafeBC benefits, the LTD qualification period and while receiving LTD benefits, Union leaves, jury and court witness duty, leave for education and training purposes, and maternity, parental and adoption leave.
- Seniority shall apply on a bargaining unit basis, except where otherwise mutually agreed by the District and the Union.
- Regular employees shall continue to accumulate seniority while on WorkSafeBC Benefits.
- Auxiliary employees on WorkSafeBC Benefits shall receive credit for those scheduled hours that have been compensated by WorkSafeBC. The auxiliary employee shall provide substantiation from WorkSafeBC for the claim for hours to be credited.
9.02 Probationary Period
- All newly hired regular employees shall serve a probationary period not exceeding six (6) consecutive months from the date of hire, during which period such an employee may be terminated if he/she is unsatisfactory for any work related reason. Upon satisfactory completion of the probationary period, the employee’s seniority shall commence on the date of initial appointment. In the event a probationary employee has been absent from the workplace for ten (10) or more cumulative days, then after consultation with the Union, the probationary period may be extended by the length of time of any unpaid leave of absence granted during the probationary period.
- Notwithstanding (i) above, an employee who is the successful applicant for a posted regular vacancy shall have their time previously worked in the same position credited towards the probation period, subject to a minimum of three (3) consecutive months’ probation in the posted position.
- An employee who has been converted from auxiliary to regular status, without a posting, shall not serve a further probationary period.
9.03 Auxiliary Employee Seniority
Auxiliary employees who are appointed as regular employees shall have their cumulative hours of work as an auxiliary employee credited for purposes of regular seniority as follows:
- upon completion of the probationary period
- upon conversion from auxiliary to regular status.
It is understood that this clause applies to seniority only and is in no way applicable to service for purpose of retroactive benefit entitlement, except vacation and sick leave entitlements.
9.04 Seniority Lists
- The District shall maintain a list showing the length of continuous service (seniority) of each regular employee and a current list shall be mailed to the Union in January of each year.
- Where two (2) or more employees commenced work at the same time, the seniority of each employee shall be determined in accordance with the respective dates of application for employment.The District shall maintain a list showing the length of continuous service (seniority) of each regular employee and a current list shall be mailed to the Union in January of each year.
- Past service in casual or temporary hours of work shall be accrued and recorded for the purposes of this Collective Agreement. Such hours of work and hours of work as an auxiliary employee shall be maintained by the Employer for the purposes of Article 10, Posting and Filling of Vacancies.
9.05 Transfer out of Bargaining Unit
- Employees shall not be transferred or promoted out of the bargaining unit without their consent. Such employees shall retain the seniority they have acquired up to the date of leaving the unit but shall not continue to accumulate seniority for periods of service outside the unit. When an employee is transferred or promoted out of the bargaining unit, the employee shall retain the right to return and upon returning, the employee shall bump into a position consistent with his/her previously accumulated seniority, qualifications, experience, skill and ability on the basis of Article 11.03, provided such position is not higher than his/her former bargaining unit position. Junior employees displaced as a result shall likewise be eligible to bump.
- Employees transferred or promoted pursuant to this Article shall be appointed for a period of time not to exceed two (2) calendar years, unless extended by mutual agreement of the Union and the Employer.
9.06 Loss of Seniority
A regular employee shall lose seniority in the event:
- The employee is terminated for cause and is not reinstated.
- The employee resigns.
- The employee has been laid off from regular employment for longer than twelve (12) consecutive months, or fails to accept recall under Article 11.06 (ii), or fails to report on the date and time required when recalled.
ARTICLE 10, POSTING AND FILLING OF VACANCIES
10.01 Posted Vacancies
- Where a regular vacancy occurs, or a new regular position is established, the District shall post, for a minimum period of five (5) working days, a vacancy notice containing information related to the classification (for example, pay rate, qualifications and work experience desired). The conditions of employment noted herein shall also be included in any newspaper or outside advertisements.
- In addition to posting job vacancy notices within all departments as above, the District may, with the concurrence of the Union, advertise externally on a simultaneous basis. Agreement to post job vacancies externally at the same time shall not be unreasonably withheld.
- Temporary and auxiliary positions shall not be posted under this Article, except that temporary and auxiliary fixed term appointments, the duration of which the Employer anticipates will exceed three (3) months, shall be posted.
- All internal posted vacancies shall include the following statement on the notice “This is a Union position”.
10.02 Factors Considered in Filling Posted Vacancies
- The following factors shall receive consideration when filling posted vacancies: qualifications, experience, skill and ability. When these factors are equal among applicants for the position, the employee from among this group having the greatest seniority shall receive preference.
- All determinations of qualifications, experience, skill and ability shall be made by the Employer. Whether such determinations were made in a fair and equitable fashion shall be subject to the grievance/arbitration procedures under this Agreement.
- In any arbitration pursuant to section (ii) above, if the Union is first able to demonstrate that the senior employee (grievor) presently has the qualifications, experience, skill and ability to do the job in question, the Employer must then establish that such qualifications, experience, skill and ability are not equal to those possessed by the successful applicant.
- Notwithstanding 10.02(i) above, preference shall be given to the most senior outside (eight (8) hours of work per day) employee who applies for the position provided that the senior employee possesses the qualifications, `experience, skill and ability to perform the work in question. This provision shall apply only to those outside classifications in pay bands one (1) through five (5) plus the classification of Parks Maintenance Worker 2 of pay band six (6) of Schedule “A” as referenced in that Schedule.
- A regular employee applying for a posted vacancy who lacks the formal educational or technical certification required in the position shall not be rejected solely on that basis if he/she is judged by the Employer as having sufficient experience, skill and ability to otherwise satisfactorily perform the work in question, provided always that such employee is currently enrolled in an appropriate course of study or is in some other fashion acceptable to the Employer currently preparing to achieve the necessary certification and provided further that the employee can be expected to achieve such certification within a period of time deemed reasonable by the Employer. In such circumstances, the Employer shall consider the employee as having already achieved the required certification at the time of the promotional competition. The employee shall compete for the vacancy on this basis and, if successful in winning that competition over other applicants on the basis of section (i) above, he/she shall be awarded the position contingent upon successful achievement of such certification within the time limit established by the Employer for that purpose. If the employee fails to achieve such certification within this period, the employee shall revert to his/her former position.
- In filling any posted vacancy on the basis of this section, a current regular employee having the required qualifications, experience, skill and ability to do the work in question will be given first consideration over an external applicant.
10.03 Applications by Auxiliary Employees
- Auxiliary employees shall be eligible to apply for any vacancy posted under this Article and filled on the basis of Article 10.02. Provided always that the qualifications, experience, skill and ability of the auxiliary employee to perform the work in question is equal to that of an external applicant, the auxiliary employee shall receive preference.
- Auxiliary employees who have completed their probationary period shall have seniority for purposes of applying for any posted position. An auxiliary employee’s hours worked shall be recognized as seniority for purposes of this Article.
10.04 Appraisal Period
- In the event that a currently employed regular employee is transferred or promoted and thereafter proves unsatisfactory or unable to perform the duties of a new position to the satisfaction of the District, the employee shall have the right, during this first or an extended appraisal period, to revert, without loss of seniority, to his/her former position, classification and pay rate.
- In all such cases of transfer or promotion, the initial appraisal period shall be three (3) months, which period may be extended for an additional three (3) months through mutual agreement of the Parties.
10.05 Disclosure of Documents
Upon the filing of a grievance and upon receipt of a written request from the Employer or the Union for disclosure of documents, the Parties agree to provide all readily available documents in their possession that are relevant to the grievance, unless disclosure is prohibited by law. The question of whether such disclosure is prohibited by law may be referred to an Arbitrator for a binding decision.
10.06 Union Notification of Successful Applicant
The Employer agrees to notify the Union, in writing, of the name of the successful applicant within fourteen (14) days of the appointment to the position.
10.07 On the Job Training
- When, in the Employer’s opinion, operational requirements both warrant and permit and when it is practical from a financial perspective to do so, the Employer shall endeavour to provide on-the-job training to employees within their own functional work units during normal working hours. The purpose of this training shall be primarily to maximize flexibility when assigning day-to-day work within the work unit and/or department and, secondly, to provide enhanced opportunity for employees to advance within their own departments as permanent vacancies occur therein.
- Additional Employer considerations when selecting employees for training under this Article shall be as follows in rank order:
- The present and future operating needs and efficiency of the department and/or work unit involved;
- the relationship between an eligible employee’s current work and the training to be offered;
- the capabilities and past performance of the employees considered for training, and;
- seniority.
- Training of a more general nature or of interest to a number of employees in a given work unit or department may also be offered by the Employer under this Article. Such training shall always meet the basic criteria set-out in the first sentence of Subsection (i) above, with employees being selected for such training on the basis of Subsection (ii) above.
- Training under this Article shall in no event take place between departments and shall not be provided solely to enable employees to obtain the qualifications or experience required in order to qualify for higher paid positions. For purposes of this Article, “functional work units” shall be defined as smaller work units within a given department which, for purposes of training, are considered distinct for functional or operational reasons by the Employer.
ARTICLE 11, LAYOFFS, RECALL AND BUMPING
11.01 Definition
Consistent with the following Articles, a layoff shall be defined as the loss by a regular employee of the opportunity to work in the position he/she currently occupies as a result of either:
- the elimination of such position, or
- any reduction in working hours for a regular full-time employee, or
- the permanent reduction of the working hours in their position in excess of one (1) hour per day for a regular part-time or regular seasonal employee, or
- the reduction in the rate of pay (pay grade) in the position as a result of a re-evaluation of the position.
11.02 Layoff Order
When laying off regular employees within each classification and department designated for the layoff by the Employer, the least senior regular employee shall be the first employee laid off, within that department; provided always that the employee(s) who remains within that classification and department having the qualifications, experience, skill and ability to perform the ongoing work.
11.03 Bumping Rights
- Where a regular employee has received notice that he/she is not to be retained in the classification and department designated for layoff under Article 11.02, such employee may exercise his/her right to bump an employee of lesser seniority and transfer laterally into another job classification in the same department and at the same pay grade level, or alternatively into a job classification at a lower pay grade level, in the same department. An employee’s right to bump another employee of lesser seniority shall depend on his/her having the qualifications, experience, skill and ability to perform the work in question. The decision regarding an employee’s suitability, as above, for transfer shall be made by the Employer and whether such determination was made by the Employer in a fair and equitable fashion shall be subject to the grievance procedure.
- Where a regular employee has received notice of layoff and such employee chooses to exercise his/her bumping rights under section (i), such election shall be made within three (3) working days of the date of receipt of such notice.
- Where a regular employee has received notice of layoff and where such employee occupies a job classification which is comparable to other departments, the right to bump an employee of lesser seniority shall be extended on an interdepartmental basis, as outlined in section (i) above.
- Upward bumping is not permitted under this Article, except where an employee’s position has been re-evaluated to a lower pay grade and the employee did not bump another employee at that time, upward bumping shall be permitted the next time a lay-off occurs to that employee and only to a position in their former higher pay grade. Regular part-time employees may only bump other regular part-time employees.
- When an employee bumps a more junior employee in accordance with this Article, he/she shall be placed at the same increment step for the new wage grade as he/she occupied before so bumping.
11.04 Definition
- Regular employees who elect to bump in accordance with Article 11.03, or who are recalled to employment in accordance with Article 11.06 (ii), except when re-employed in the same position as occupied before the layoff, shall serve an appraisal period not exceeding three (3) continuous months in the new position.
During this three (3) month period the employee shall be provided with an appropriate orientation and workplace assistance in the new position. During this period should the employee prove unable to satisfactorily perform the duties of the new position, he/she shall be laid-off and placed on the recall list, and any employee(s) who was originally displaced shall have the right to return to his/her former position and pay rate. - In no event shall any employee be permitted to bump a second time as a result of the same layoff.
11.05 Recall List
Regular employees laid off under this Article 11, and not bumping a more junior employee in accordance with Article 11.03, shall be placed on the recall list in seniority order for a period not to exceed twelve (12) consecutive months, provided that periods of temporary and auxiliary employment shall not establish new or additional recall rights.
11.06 Recall Rights
- Regular employees who have been laid-off and placed on the recall list in accordance with this Article 11, shall have preference in rehiring by seniority; firstly, in the Departments from which they have been laid-off and secondly, in other Departments, provided the employee in question has the qualifications, experience, skill and ability to perform the work required.
- New employees shall not be hired following a layoff until the Employer has attempted to recall, in accordance with Article 11.07 below, former regular employees who have been laid-off and placed on the recall list and having the required qualifications, experience, skill and ability to perform the work in question.
- In no event shall the Employer be required to re employ any former employee who has been laid off and on the recall list for longer than twelve (12) consecutive months.
- Notwithstanding Article 11.06, Recall Rights, an employee who has been given notice of layoff and has chosen to bump in accordance with Article 11.03, Bumping Rights, and subsequently and within twelve (12) months the position from which they were laid off becomes available, such employee shall be offered recall rights to their former position, and if accepted, the vacancy shall not be posted. Seniority shall prevail if two (2) or more such employees seek recall to the same vacancy.
11.07 Recall Procedures
- It shall be the responsibility of laid off regular employees on the recall list to maintain their current telephone number and postal address with the District’s Human Resource Department. When filling regular vacancies under Article 11.06 (ii), and before offering employment to new employees, the Employer shall attempt to contact a laid off regular employee on the recall list having the required qualifications, experience, skill and ability to perform the work in question, at the telephone number so provided, to instruct the employee of the position available, the rate of pay, other requirements of the position, the location, the date and time to report for work. Failing personal contact, the Employer shall send by courier a letter to the employee’s current address as provided by the Employer by the employee. Should the Employer be unable to contact the employee within ten (10) working days from the postal registration date, or should the employee either not accept the recall, or fail to report on the date and time required, the employee shall, subject to section (iv) below, lose all rights to recall.
- The date and time to report may be extended by a maximum of ten (10) working days upon the approval of the Employer, should the employee have extenuating personal circumstances which make it impossible to report as required, provided always that the operational requirements of the Employer permit.
- Employees who are otherwise eligible for recall but, as a result of illness or temporary disability are unable to report for work, shall be “bypassed”. Employees on the recall list shall notify the Employer when they are to be temporarily away to provide a temporary phone number and address where the Employer shall be able to contact them during such absence.
- Employees shall have the right to refuse two (2) recalls, to employment during their twelve (12) month recall period before losing their recall rights.
- The above sections notwithstanding, when it is not feasible to wait the ten (10) working days to contact the employee who is eligible for recall or to wait for such employee to report, the Employer reserves the right to hire other than the eligible employee on a temporary basis, until the eligible employee reports for work pursuant to this Article.
11.08 Status While on Recall List
During this twelve (12) month period on the recall list, laid-off employees shall not be eligible to receive any of the benefits of this Agreement. The seniority, sick leave credits and vacation entitlement level of such employees shall be frozen at the time of their layoff and should the employee be recalled pursuant to this Article within the twelve (12) month recall period, the seniority, sick leave credits and vacation entitlement level of such employee shall be reinstated to that which had existed at the time of the layoff.
11.09 Status While on Recall List
This Article 11 does not apply to temporary layoffs of five (5) working days or less resulting from causes reasonably beyond the control of the Employer.
11.10 Special Placement
- When operational requirements permit, an employee who is disabled or infirm and, as a result, is permanently unable to perform his/her normal job duties may, through mutual agreement of the Parties on an individual case by case basis, be permitted to bump into a position such disabled or infirmed employee has the present qualifications, experience, skill and ability to perform, provided such position is occupied by a junior employee and provided further that no upward bumping shall be permitted under this Article.
- Employees receiving special placement under this Article shall be paid the rate for the job into which they bump. Nothing in this Article in any way prejudices the Employer’s right to terminate employees for culpable or non-culpable reasons.
11.11 Notice of Layoff
- The Employer shall provide written notice to regular employees, who do not bump a more junior employee in accordance with Article 11.03, and who, as result, are to be laid-off and placed on the recall list, two (2) calendar weeks prior to the effective date of their layoff. Employees who have completed three (3) years continuous service shall receive additional notice of one (1) calendar week; and for each subsequent completed year of continuous service, an additional one (1) calendar week, to a maximum total of eight (8) calendar weeks’ notice. If the employee is not given an opportunity to work the applicable notice period, he/she shall be paid for that portion of the notice period during which work was not made available.
- The Union shall be notified of all layoffs under this Article.
ARTICLE 27, NEW AND REVISED CLASSIFICATIONS
27.01 Job Descriptions.
The Employer agrees to draw up Job Descriptions for all positions for which the Union is the bargaining agent which shall be the recognized description. Where any such position changes sufficiently to warrant a revised description, or the Employer creates a new position, a new or revised description shall be prepared by the Employer and forwarded to the Union. This description shall not be finalized by the Employer until thirty (30) days have elapsed following the Union’s receipt of such description to allow opportunity for the Union to discuss such description with the Employer.
27.02 Pay Reviews
- Where the work of a position changes sufficiently to warrant a reclassification, the employee, or the Union, involved may request a review of the pay rate for such position in writing, including providing the full details, using the approved questionnaire, to support the request to the Employer’s Manager(s) of the operation. In a spirit of ensuring timely information is presented for pay review, the Employer shall review the details of the request and forward to the Human Resources Department and the Union for review by the Classification and Pay Review Committee within ninety (90) days of receipt. The Human Resources Department will advise the Joint Chairs of the Classification and Pay Review Committee of requests as received.
- Where a new position is established by the Employer, the rate of pay for such new position shall be established by the Employer for a period of six (6) months. The employee(s) involved, or the Union, may request a review of this pay rate in writing and accordance with (i) above following the completion of this six (6) month period.
- The Classification and Pay Review Committee (as set out in Article 27.03 below) shall complete the requested pay review within ninety (90) days of the request being submitted to it under section (i) and present its findings. If the Parties are unable to reach agreement as a result of such pay review, the matter may be resolved by arbitration under this Agreement.
- Pay reviews and arbitrations conducted pursuant to this Article shall be based primarily upon internal comparison to other positions contained in this Collective Agreement, with such internal comparison to be based, unless the Parties otherwise agree, primarily on the job evaluation plan and applicable weightings (which shall be deemed to be an Appendix to this Agreement) previously agreed to by the Parties.
- When a position changes sufficiently to warrant a reclassification and a different rate of pay results, such different rate shall be paid retroactively to the date the request and all details for review were first received.
27.03 Classification and Pay Review Committee
- The Employer and the Union mutually agree to establish a joint committee for the purpose of reviewing matters related to the reclassification and re-evaluation of existing positions. Such committee shall consist of not more than three (3) representatives from either the Employer or the Union. The Classification and Pay Review Committee shall:
- screen and review written submissions and supporting documentation related to requests for the reclassification or re-evaluation of a specific job or series of job classification;
- discuss the merits of each case and where possible reach agreement on the matter under review;
- notify the employee(s) of the Committee’s decision with regard to the final disposition of his/her case.
- The Employer and the Union agree to jointly undertake any necessary research requested to assist with the final adjudication of each case.
27.04 Salary Protection
- An employee whose position was grandparented upon implementation of job evaluation / pay equity shall maintain their existing rate of pay and shall receive all general wage increases for the duration of the current Collective Agreement while such employee remains in their current position.
- An employee, whose position has been re-evaluated downward as a result of an evaluation initiated after the date of ratification of this Agreement to a pay grade below that pay grade presently received by the employee, shall be “blue-circled”.
- For the purposes of this Article, “blue-circled” means that the employee shall continue to receive fifty percent (50%) of the negotiated wage increases applicable to the employee’s re-evaluated position until the wage rate of the employee’s position equals or exceeds the wage rate being received by the employee.
27.05 Positions to be Posted
- Where the re-evaluation of a position results in a three (3) or more pay grade wage increase for the position, then the position shall be posted as a vacancy unless otherwise agreed by the Employer and the Union.
- Where an incumbent employee is not the successful applicant for the posted vacancy, then such employee shall be laid off and exercise bumping rights pursuant to this Collective Agreement.
27.06 Job Evaluation Plan Part of Collective Agreement
The Joint Gender Neutral Weighted Point Job Evaluation Plan as agreed between the Employer and the Union forms part of this Collective Agreement as an Appendix.
ARTICLE 28, TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE
28.01 The Union recognizes the right of the Employer to introduce technological change for the purpose of improving operating efficiency.
28.02 Where a technological change is to be implemented which (i) affects the terms and conditions, or security of employment of a significant number of employees to whom the Collective Agreement applies; and (ii) alters significantly the basis upon which the Collective Agreement was negotiated, the Employer shall give a minimum of ninety (90) days written notice of such change to the Union.
28.03 Within fifteen (15) days from the date of such notice, the Employer and the Union shall form an ad hoc Technological Change Committee, consisting of two (2) members from each side, to discuss and resolve, if possible, all matters pertaining to the proposed change.
28.04 Where the introduction of such technological change results in an employee becoming redundant, the above committee shall include in its discussions, opportunities for retraining, transfer, or the matter of severance pay for such employee.
28.05 Where the committee is unable to resolve a dispute arising from the technological change, the matter shall be resolved, without stoppage of work, in accordance with the Grievance/ Arbitration procedure established in this Agreement.
ARTICLE 29, SUB-CONTRACTORS
29.01 All sub-contractors of the District shall provide wages which are at least equal to those specified in this Agreement when work of a similar or same nature is performed.
ARTICLE 36, CONTRACTING OUT
36.01 No regular employee shall be laid off and placed on the recall list, terminated, or failed to be recalled to their classification as a result of contracting out.